Donald Trump Jr.'s Kalshi role ends after his Palm Beach firm backed rival Polymarket

Two rival markets, one adviser

Kalshi and Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son, agreed to end his adviser role after his Palm Beach firm invested in rival Polymarket, Kalshi said Thursday. The firm, 1789 Capital, reports about $2.7 billion under management from an office on Royal Palm Way. Trump Jr. still advises Polymarket.

Why it matters: The Seminole Tribe of Florida is among 145 tribes and tribal groups backing New Jersey's request that the Supreme Court hear its case against Kalshi. Tribal gaming revenue sharing paid the state $1.04 billion last budget year, state economists report. Democrats, who won both houses of Congress, are expected to crack down on prediction markets, CNBC reports.

The story so far: Kalshi named Trump Jr. a strategic adviser on Jan. 13, 2025. In August 2025, 1789 Capital invested in Polymarket and he joined its advisory board, keeping his Kalshi role.

What Kalshi says

"We have mutually agreed to end Don's advisory role after his firm's significant investment in a competitor this past summer," a Kalshi spokesperson told Reuters. Kalshi said talks began this August, after 1789 Capital's investment in Polymarket became public. CNBC, quoting a Kalshi spokesperson, called it "a mutual arrangement to end the advisory role."

CNBC reported that Kalshi and Trump Jr. both agreed it was a conflict of interest to keep him as an adviser while he was a top investor in Polymarket. Kalshi said "there were no political considerations that factored into the decision." Two people told Reuters there had been "some concerns raised within the company about potential ramifications of the Democratic sweep."

In early October, Kalshi's chief executive, Tarek Mansour, said on MS NOW that Trump Jr.'s tie creates an "optics issue." He said Kalshi "has never relied on that relationship to gain favor with the government," CNBC reported. When he joined Kalshi in January 2025, Trump Jr. got a stake the Financial Times then valued at $300,000, Reuters reported.

The Palm Beach firm and its Polymarket money

1789 Capital Management lists its office at 324 Royal Palm Way in Palm Beach, federal records show. It has been registered with the SEC since Aug. 29, 2025. Its Aug. 11 filing reports about $2.7 billion of assets under management across 26 accounts.

That filing names a holding company, co-founder and president Omeed Malik and co-founder Christopher Buskirk as the people who control the firm. It lists Trump Jr. as an advisory affiliate, and the firm's website calls him a senior partner. A letter in August from Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, says the firm made "Don Jr., the President's eldest son, a full partner" on Nov. 9, 2024.

On Sept. 1, a 1789 spokesperson said the firm is leading a $1 billion Polymarket round that values Polymarket at $21 billion, CoinDesk reported. Spokesperson Alexa Henning said the firm is putting in about $300 million, on top of roughly $200 million it had already invested. Polymarket had been valued at about $15 billion. Kalshi's spokesperson now says 1789 "led Polymarket's most recent funding round"; we found no report that the round has closed.

Kalshi itself announced a $1 billion round on Oct. 29 that valued it at $40 billion, co-led by Sequoia Capital and Wellington Management, Covers and CDC Gaming Reports reported.

Washington is watching

Raskin wrote to Malik, Buskirk and Trump Jr. on Aug. 26. He asked for a list of every company 1789 has invested in, its communications with federal and elected officials, and its records on hiring Trump Jr. He set a deadline of Sept. 9.

Raskin's letter says the firm "reportedly has over $3 billion in assets under management," citing The New York Times, and managed about $150 million before Trump Jr. arrived, citing The Wall Street Journal. Raskin's office says Polymarket's value rose from a reported $300 million to $15 billion in less than a year. Those are Raskin's claims.

The firm's lawyers described the inquiry as built on unfounded allegations rather than evidence, and the firm declined to hand over the documents, Crypto Briefing reported. Democrats have said they plan to use their investigative powers on the president's family, Reuters reported.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto wrote on X: "Let's be clear about what's happening: the Trump family is heavily invested in prediction market platforms." Rep. Ro Khanna called for a ban on the sports contracts the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has defended, CoinDesk reported.

Their side

"We are grateful for his contributions in helping us market Kalshi to more customers," Kalshi's spokesperson said. Trump Jr. "has said he invests as a private citizen and does not hold a policy role in his father's administration," The National News Desk reported.

In October 2025, a Trump Jr. spokesperson told Front Office Sports: "This doesn't change anything regarding Don's role with Kalshi." When 1789 first invested in Polymarket in August 2025, Trump Jr. said he was "honored to join the company's advisory board." Trump Jr. did not immediately respond to Reuters. Polymarket and 1789 Capital declined to comment, Reuters reported.

What's next

What's next: The new Congress, with Democratic majorities in both houses, takes its seats in January.

Sources we read

Reuters, Nov. 12, via Investing.com. CNBC (Ananya Chetia, Contessa Brewer), Nov. 12. CoinDesk (Helene Braun), Nov. 12, and (Shaurya Malwa), Sept. 1. The National News Desk (Emma Koppelman), Nov. 12, and (Molly K. Gibbs), Sept. 1. Fortune, Jan. 13, 2025. Covers, Oct. 29. CDC Gaming Reports, Nov. 1. SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure and Form ADV for 1789 Capital Management. 1789 Capital's team page. House Judiciary Committee Democrats, Raskin letter, Aug. 26, and release, Aug. 27. Crypto Briefing, Sept. 9. Front Office Sports (Ben Horney), Oct. 28, 2025. The Block, Aug. 26, 2025. Florida Office of Economic and Demographic Research, Aug. 7. U.S. Supreme Court docket 26-299.