Onchain, in court: What happened in crypto legal news this weekA case tied to defunct crypto exchange FTX moves forward, a soldier seeks to dismiss over a Polymarket bet and a former congressman was ordered to pay $35,000 for manipulative trading.

This week in crypto-related legal news, three notable cases highlight ongoing judicial scrutiny around digital assets and related activities. Michelle Bond, wife of former FTX co-CEO Ryan Salame, filed a motion in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York seeking to exclude evidence of her husband’s 2023 guilty plea from her campaign finance case. Bond faces allegations that her unsuccessful 2022 New York congressional campaign was funded partly through contributions facilitated by Salame using FTX funds. Her lawyers argue that Salame’s plea deals with political contributions made in his name have little probative value regarding Bond’s guilt or intent and that admitting such evidence would unfairly prejudice her case. The case continues as one of the last legal matters tied to FTX following the exchange’s collapse in 2022 and related convictions of executives.

In another development, former New York Congressman George Santos was ordered by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to pay a total of $35,070 after making profits from bets placed on the prediction markets platform Kalshi. Santos traded on event contracts connected to his attendance at the 2026 State of the Union address, simultaneously posting misleading social media statements about his intentions that influenced contract prices in his favor. The CFTC imposed a $17,500 civil monetary penalty and required disgorgement of $17,570 in profits. Santos is barred from trading on prediction markets for three years. His prior legal troubles include an 87-month prison sentence for wire fraud and identity theft, of which he only served three months before a presidential commutation.

A third case involves US soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke, charged with making over $400,000 on Polymarket event contracts based on nonpublic information related to a Venezuelan military operation that led to President Nicolás Maduro’s removal. Van Dyke’s legal team has filed a 51-page memo seeking to dismiss the indictment, partly arguing that the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) is ambiguous about treating event contracts as “swaps,” which the CFTC uses to claim jurisdiction over prediction markets. The defense contends this ambiguity means ordinary citizens cannot have fair notice that such wagers fall under the CEA, advising dismissal of some charges. The case could have broad implications for regulation of prediction markets; a trial is anticipated in late 2026 or early 2027, with Van Dyke pleading not guilty.

Together, these cases underscore continuing efforts by US regulators and courts to define and enforce legal boundaries in cryptocurrency-related activities, including campaign finance, prediction market trading, and insider trading allegations connected with military operations. The outcomes may impact how digital asset platforms and their users are regulated, particularly around the classification and oversight of event contracts and associated financial instruments.