NEW YORK, July 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NEXTPredict.io, a leading media and conference organization and host of NEXTPredict, the world's first global B2B prediction markets conference, announced today that it has executed the first-ever use of a prediction market to hedge an investment in a major conference, securing $3 million in coverage against flight cancellations for its Oct. 22-23 summit. The trade was executed through Kalshi’s new flight cancellation market, with Susquehanna serving as the market maker.
NEXTPredict will pay $12,000 in premium for contracts that could return the cost of the summit if more than 50 percent of flights scheduled to arrive at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport are canceled on Oct. 21, the primary attendee travel day before the event.
“Over 13 years and more than 800 events, we have seen firsthand how quickly circumstances outside an organizer’s control can undo years of work,” said Pierre Lindh, co-founder and managing director of NEXTPredict. “COVID-19 eliminated an entire year of revenue, airport closures in the Middle East prevented attendees from participating in our NEXT event this past March, and severe storms have forced us to cancel festivals or operate with significantly lower attendance. Event companies commit nearly all of their costs upfront, sometimes after years of planning, while most of their revenue is realized over one or two days. That leaves our industry enormously exposed. Using prediction markets to help hedge that risk could be a godsend for event organizers because we no longer have to accept exposure as an unavoidable part of the business.”
Inspired by industry-specific strategic hedges, the transaction applies risk-management strategies long used throughout financial and commodities markets. Airlines hedge against changes in fuel prices; farmers protect against uncertainty surrounding crop yields, and investors use options to manage exposure to market movements. NEXTPredict is applying the same principles to a measurable external event that could materially affect its business.
“Prediction markets are most powerful when they give people and businesses a way to turn uncertainty into actionable decisions,” said Tarek Mansour, co-founder and CEO of Kalshi. “NEXTPredict is using a market on Kalshi exactly as markets are meant to be used. This is a shining example of prediction markets moving beyond forecasting and becoming practical business infrastructure.”
Kalshi introduced its flight cancellation market after self-certifying the contracts with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on July 14. The market allows participants to trade on whether cancellations at a specific airport will cross a predetermined threshold, providing a potential model for how organizers could manage low-probability, high-impact risks surrounding conferences, festivals, trade shows and other major live events. The market is not for individual flights and has explicit prohibitions for manipulation. All traders must agree to Kalshi’s trading policies for this market before trading. “The ability to effectively manage risk depends on efficient markets and reliable liquidity,” said Joe Grubb, head of business development, prediction markets at Susquehanna. “Prediction markets have paved the way for the novel price discovery and market structure needed to transfer institutional risk that historically had no path for execution. This transaction demonstrates how those mechanics can be applied to a real business risk and provides a compelling example of the institutional potential of these markets, which Susquehanna is excited to continue to support.”
The agenda for NEXTPredict will focus on the forces shaping the prediction markets ecosystem, including regulation, liquidity, market infrastructure, institutional capital flows, forecasting applications, and the role of media in distributing market signals. NEXTPredict will take place two weeks before the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, a period expected to drive increased activity across political, economic, and global event markets.
For more information on the NEXTPredict Summit, visit: https://nextpredict.io/summits/the-worlds-prediction-markets-summit/
ABOUT NEXTPREDICT
NEXTPredict is a media and events platform dedicated exclusively to the global prediction markets industry. Launched by the team behind NEXT.io, NEXTPredict delivers independent news, analysis, and convenings focused on the intersection of forecasting, finance, technology, and public policy. Its flagship event, The World’s Prediction Markets Summit, the global B2B prediction markets conference, will take place October 22–23, 2026, at Convene, Hudson Yards in New York City, bringing together founders, executives, investors, and policymakers. As prediction markets continue to move into the mainstream, the summit is designed to explore the future of market‑based forecasting, with sessions focused on regulation, liquidity, infrastructure, product development, and capital flows.
ABOUT KALSHI
Founded in 2018, Kalshi is the world’s next-generation financial exchange. Prediction markets provide accurate, real-time information on the likelihood of events, making humanity more informed about the future. As the first regulated exchange for events, Kalshi is credited with legalizing and establishing prediction markets as a financial asset class. It’s the leading safe and regulated platform, trusted by millions of people and a growing number of institutions in America. To learn more about Kalshi, visit www.kalshi.com.
ABOUT SUSQUEHANNA
“Susquehanna” refers to Susquehanna Government Products, LLLP, a registered market maker on the Kalshi exchange. It is part of the Susquehanna International Group of Companies (the “Susquehanna Group”), which was formed in 1987, and is one of the largest proprietary trading firms in the world. Fueled by an integration of trading, technology, and quantitative research, the Susquehanna Group has forged a collaborative culture with over 3,500 employees located in more than 17 offices around the world. While trading remains at the core of its business, the Susquehanna Group is also at the forefront of innovation in institutional sales, global private equity, sports analytics, and prediction markets.
Sterling Randle Hot Paper Lantern srandle@hotpaperlantern.com 801-319-6153
