Why the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe Is Entering Prediction Markets
Marshall Pierite
Chairman and CEO of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana
For generations, Native American communities have fought for something many Americans take for granted: the ability to determine our own future by creating and controlling our own destinies. We have fought to protect our lands, preserve our cultures, exercise our governmental authority and build economies capable of competing and thriving in the modern marketplace.
Today, that same principle of self-determination is leading the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana into prediction markets. Through SaltTrade Derivatives, a new Tribally-owned venture developed in partnership with Kalshi, we intend to participate and help shape this emerging industry as owners and innovators.
Our decision will generate discussion and debate. Some Tribal nations and state governments have raised concerns about prediction markets, particularly contracts involving sporting events and whether certain products cross the line into gaming. Those questions are being contested in courts and regulatory proceedings. We respect those concerns, and we respect the sovereign right of every Tribal nation to reach its own conclusion.
We have not seen any evidence that prediction market revenues come at the expense of tribal gaming revenue. Tribal gaming hit a record $46.2 billion in gross gaming revenue in fiscal 2025, and growth accelerated in most NIGC regions during the same period prediction markets expanded — including regions where Tribes have litigation pending against prediction market operators. What we see is an enormous opportunity to modernize – it’s not a threat to existing revenue, it’s a new revenue stream that didn’t exist before.
Further, we expect some tribes, particularly those with established, high-revenue gaming operations, will say the Tribe is ‘selling out’ Tribal gaming or that this is bad for Indian Country. But that reaction often comes from a position of strength that not every tribe shares. For tribes without the same access to lucrative gaming markets or major metropolitan populations, prediction markets represent a new and meaningful source of revenue.
Tribal sovereignty means a nation gets to decide for itself what is best for its people. Tunica-Biloxi is doing exactly that: creating a new source of economic opportunity, and doing it on its own terms.
We will also continue to defend Indian gaming. Congress enacted the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act to promote tribal economic development, self-sufficiency and strong tribal governments. Gaming has created jobs and funded health care, education, housing, infrastructure and elder services across Indian Country. The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe knows that story firsthand.
But protecting what we have built should not prevent us from pursuing what comes next.
Prediction markets operate within a federally regulated financial marketplace where participants buy and sell event contracts tied to objectively verifiable outcomes involving economics, elections, weather, technology, entertainment, sports, and other events. Just like traditional commodity futures, participants compete in the open market.
We are partnering with Kalshi to power our prediction markets software application because it will allow us to plug directly into Kalshi’s existing exchange, and from day one its traders draw on the same global liquidity pool as every other Kalshi participant nationwide.
Indian Country should absolutely have a seat at the table while this industry is being built. Too often in American history, Native nations have been invited into emerging industries only after the infrastructure, ownership, and wealth were established by others. We should not accept that model anymore. By entering this market as an owner of a prediction markets app, the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe is exercising its sovereignty and helping open another potential pathway for Native economic participation.
Sovereignty must mean more than the right to defend the industries we already have. It must include the freedom to build new ones.
The larger question is whether Native nations will participate as owners, innovators and trailblazers in an emerging financial industry – or watch another generation of American economic development pass us by. For Tunica-Biloxi, the answer is clear: we will not simply wait for opportunity to reach Indian Country. We intend to take our place in shaping this industry from the beginning.
That choice is not an abandonment of tribal gaming, and it is not a demand that every tribe follow us. Some tribes may decide prediction markets are not right for them. Others may participate. Some may challenge particular products while exploring opportunities elsewhere in the industry. That is sovereignty. Economic sovereignty does not require economic uniformity.
Tribal gaming was once considered controversial and uncertain, and debate over it continues today. Tribal leaders endured difficult legal and political battles because they understood a fundamental truth: economic independence strengthens sovereignty. For the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe, gaming has been transformative, and we will continue to protect it. But the next chapter of tribal economic development will not be written by a single industry. It will be written by tribes willing to diversify, innovate, and pursue opportunities in markets where Native ownership has historically been absent.
For too much of our history, others made economic decisions for Native people. Those days are over.
The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe is entering prediction markets because sovereignty must include the freedom to build new industries, govern our own businesses, and create opportunities for generations we may never meet. For too much of our history, others decided what Native people could build, own, and become. Those days are over. We intend to shape what comes next.