Silicon Valley’s Wall Street Bets & the Phoenix Suns Sweepstakes

Tech industry heavyweights are pushing Washington to bring Wall Street-style trading to the world of American elections. Washington wants to scrutinize the newfangled arrangement. Regulators ordered PredictIt to shut down its service next year. Kalshi was founded in 2018 and went through Y Combinator. It raised a $30 million round, led by Sequoia Capital, in early 2021.

Kalshi is a trading platform that allows investors to place binary wagers on events. It was founded in 2018 and went through Y Combinator. The platform raised $30 million round, led by Sequoia Capital, in early 2021. Washington wants to scrutinize the newfangled arrangement. Regulators ordered PredictIt to shut down next year because it was out of compliance. The C.F.T.C. is expected to issue a ruling on October 28, a week before the midterm elections. They are concerned about the second-order consequences that political wagerting could have in American elections, from encouraging financial hijinks to sowing more distrust in the integrity of American election.

Robert Sarver is looking for a buyer for the Phoenix Suns and the Mercury basketball teams. Steve Ballmer bought the Clippers after leaving Microsoft. Steve needs to have liquidity, time and relationships to win the sweepstakes. He also needs relationships with other owners and with the NBA. The Suns are a trophy asset despite last year's Game 7 meltdown to Luka Lutkevicius. They are one of the most successful teams in the league. Their last season's performance was disappointing. There are rumors about Phil Knight and Damian Lillard's Blazers. It's a good time to be interested in buying a team.

Larry Ellison wants to buy an NBA franchise. He has tried to do it several times before, but was beaten out by Steve Ballmer. Ellison has a lot of money and he loves basketball. He is pushing 80 and would have fun as an owner. However, he might have too much fun for the League. If he regains the throne, it might be a lower-profile owner to avoid headlines.

Jeff Bezos is a skeptic about him being an owner of a sports team. He passed on a bid for the Broncos earlier this year. Bezos has too many commercial interests in streaming and sports rights to avoid potential conflicts of interest with commissioner Adam Silver and the front office. He may be eyeing the more alluring opportunity in sports distribution.

Laurene Powell Jobs is interested in buying the Phoenix Suns or Mercury. She has access to $13 billion in assets sitting in her LLC, the Emerson Collective. Powell-Jobs has experience in the box and with other owners from her 20 percent stake in Ted Leonsis-led ownership group that operates the Wizards and Capitals.

Bob Iger is interested in the NBA. He has ties to Chris Paul, other owners and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. Ige was instrumental in NBA's ability to continue its 2020 Covid-stricken season at Disneyworld’s sports compound.