Mormon Apostle Denounces Prediction Markets as Morally Wrong

Mormon apostle calls prediction markets morally wrong at general conference

A senior leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints used the faith's twice-annual general conference Saturday to condemn prediction markets alongside sports betting, declaring both forms of gambling "morally wrong" and warning that smartphone access had made the harm impossible to contain.

D. Todd Christofferson, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and one of the church's top three leaders, told the Salt Lake City gathering that online betting platforms were fostering greed among teenagers and young adults, pulling time from studies and relationships while producing, in his words, "nothing of value."

The intervention lands with particular weight in Utah, where the church's political influence runs deep and where a federal judge ruled in August that state officials may enforce anti-gambling laws against prediction market platforms. Utah tightened those laws further this year.

Christofferson named prediction markets alongside sports betting and addressed, without apparent irony, wagers on the timing of the Second Coming. The church's position places it in direct conflict with the Trump administration, which has argued that platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket operate as financial instruments rather than gambling products and should not be subject to state restriction.