[sitzkrieg]

are futures markets gambling in your eyes because speculators can participate?

[beejiu]

I can only speak from a UK perspective, but many financial instruments can be used in a gambling sense by retail "investors". In 2019, our regulator banned binary options, saying this:

"Binary options are gambling products dressed up as financial instruments. By confirming our ban today we are ensuring that investors don’t lose money from an inherently flawed product."

https://www.fca.org.uk/news/statements/fca-confirms-permanen....

Sound familiar?

They also highly regulate CFDs and other financial instruments that are marketed to retail.

[_zgx0]

Futures markets serve an important role outside of speculation, i.e. producers managing their future price risk. Betting markets do not.

[memkit]

Everything in finance is isomorphic to some combination of borrow-lend agreements. Betting markets and futures markets are functionally one in the same. The only difference is the oracles and the series of bets required to construct your position.

[hnburnsy]

Agreed but can entities also use the prediction markets to hedge against events that affect them directly or indirectly?

[snakeyjake]

Yes.