Two prediction-market operators went to federal court against Missouri's attorney general on Friday, October 16, seeking to block the state from enforcing its sports-wagering laws against their event contracts. The North American Derivatives Exchange, which operates as OG.com Prediction Markets and is linked to Crypto.com, filed in the Western District of Missouri. Novig, formally Ludlow Exchange LLC, filed separately in the Eastern District.
Both suits name Attorney General Catherine Hanaway and come after a 30-day window in her cease-and-desist letters — sent September 16 — expired without the companies shutting down sports contracts for Missouri residents.
Two suits, two dockets
Novig's filing, Ludlow Exchange, LLC v. Hanaway et al., is docketed as case no. 4:26-cv-01780. Nadex filed North American Derivatives Exchange, Inc. v. Hanaway et al. as case no. 4:26-cv-00969 and is asking for declaratory relief.
The two cases landed in different Missouri districts, but they're pushing the same argument. The Novig docket classifies the dispute as a question of federal commodity-exchange regulation — specifically, whether Missouri's sports-wagering statutes or the federal framework governs these contracts.
What the letters demanded
Hanaway's September letters gave operators 30 days to either stop selling sports event contracts to Missouri residents or get state authorization. That deadline came and went. Rather than comply, the companies sued.
It's a direct challenge to Missouri's authority over products the operators say are federally regulated derivatives, not state sports bets. The cease-and-desist campaign targeted prediction-market outfits broadly; these are the first two to push back in court.
The preemption fight, again
This is the same legal fault line that has run through prediction-market regulation for the past few years: states say sports event contracts are wagering and need a state license, while platforms argue federal commodities law occupies the field. The Novig docket frames it exactly that way — federal commodity-exchange regulation versus state wagering law.
Nadex's Crypto.com connection adds weight to the Nadex side of the fight. The exchange operates under federal derivatives rules, and its parent has been expanding into prediction markets. A state-level shutdown order would cut off a chunk of that business.
What's still open
The available case information doesn't establish how Missouri will respond to the suits or whether Hanaway's office will pursue enforcement while litigation is pending. That's the next thing to watch: whether the state agrees to hold off, or tries to enforce anyway and forces an early preliminary-injunction fight.
Both cases are freshly docketed. No hearing dates have been set in the public record reviewed so far.
