ICYMI – France orders ISPs to block Polymarket after prediction market ban ignored
The move underscores growing regulatory unease with prediction markets across Europe, with France joining Germany, Italy and Spain in restricting or blocking access to platforms like Polymarket. For an increasingly mainstream and fast-growing product, tighter enforcement in a major European market signals that regulators are prepared to escalate from transaction bans to full site blocks when compliance falls short, a precedent other jurisdictions weighing similar rules will likely watch closely. It also adds to a string of integrity concerns around prediction markets, including the hacking of a French weather probe to influence bets and a US soldier's alleged use of classified information for wagers, both of which strengthen the case for regulators to act. For platforms like Polymarket, the episode highlights regulatory and reputational risk as a growing headwind even as trading volumes and public interest continue to expand.
--- France has moved from banning bets on Polymarket to blocking the site outright.
Summary:
- France's national gaming authority ANJ said Friday it had ordered internet service providers to block access to Polymarket's website, according to France24
- The order builds on a November 2024 ban that already prohibited financial transactions to the prediction market site from French accounts
- ANJ said Polymarket's continued visibility, with betting odds updated in real time, amounted to unlawful advertising for an unauthorised gambling site, an offence carrying fines of up to €100,000
- The regulator said visits to Polymarket from French internet addresses had been rising despite the transaction ban, reaching 578,751 last month
- France's weather agency Meteo-France filed a complaint in April after one of its weather probes was hacked to manipulate bets on Polymarket
- A US soldier is facing federal charges for allegedly using classified information to bet on prediction markets tied to the January operation that captured former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, netting more than $400,000
- WSJ: Polymarket paid creators to fake trades and wins in covert US social media campaign
France ordered its internet service providers on Friday to block access to Polymarket, escalating its crackdown on the online prediction market beyond an existing ban on financial transactions to the site. The national gaming authority ANJ said the site would now be inaccessible on French territory, building on a November 2024 measure that already barred French accounts from sending money to the platform.
Polymarket is among a number of online prediction markets that let users bet on the outcome of future events, from elections to geopolitical developments. ANJ said the site's continued availability in France, where betting odds are updated in real time as events unfold, effectively functioned as advertising for an unauthorised betting operation. The regulator noted that advertising for an unauthorised betting or gambling site by any means is a criminal offence in France, with fines that can reach €100,000.
Despite the transaction ban already in place, ANJ said traffic from French internet addresses to Polymarket had continued to climb, reaching 578,751 visits last month alone, evidence that punters were finding ways around the restriction and prompting the tougher response.
The regulator's action comes as prediction markets face mounting scrutiny over integrity issues. France's national weather service, Meteo-France, filed a complaint in April after one of its weather probes was hacked in an apparent attempt to manipulate the outcome of related bets on Polymarket. Separately, a US soldier is facing federal charges for allegedly using classified information to place bets on prediction markets tied to the January operation that captured former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, allegedly profiting more than $400,000 in the process.
France is not alone in taking a hard line on the sector. The ANJ noted that Germany, Italy and Spain are among other European countries that restrict or block access to online prediction markets. France continues to permit conventional online sports betting, drawing a clear distinction between regulated wagering and unauthorised prediction market platforms like Polymarket.
This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.提供 MainLink：Investinglive RSS Breaking News Feed
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