Czech Republic tells ISPs to block Polymarket after gambling blacklisting

The Czech Finance Ministry added Polymarket to its list of unauthorized online gambling websites on Monday, requiring internet service providers (ISP) to block access.

The ministry listed the prediction market’s website under the country’s Gambling Act, which prohibits operators from offering unlicensed online gambling services to Czech users.

Under the Gambling Act, ISPs must block access to websites included on the ministry’s blacklist within 15 days of publication of the name.

Polymarket is a prediction market where users trade contracts tied to the outcomes of future events. The platform gained global attention during the 2024 US presidential election, with its markets widely cited as a gauge of election sentiment.

Polymarket and rival Kalshi have been restricted by regulators across the European Union, including in France, Germany, Poland, Romania and Spain.

Polymarket did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.

Prediction markets face watchdog scrutiny beyond Europe

Regulators in several jurisdictions argue that some prediction market contracts amount to unlicensed gambling or fall under existing financial market rules.

On July 3, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) warned that many prediction market contracts could already fall under existing restrictions on binary options if they meet the definition of financial instruments.

The regulator said companies cannot avoid EU financial rules simply by marketing binary-style products as “event contracts” rather than derivatives. ESMA said the assessment depends on a contract’s characteristics rather than how they are marketed, adding that firms offering qualifying contracts to retail investors may already be subject to national restrictions implementing the bloc’s 2018 binary options ban.

ESMA also said companies offering such products to professional clients may need authorization under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, or MiFID II.

Related: Wall Street banks tighten prediction market rules for staff as insider fears spread

Outside the EU, prediction markets have faced similar regulatory action in Australia, Indonesia and Singapore.

In the US, Kalshi and Polymarket have been targeted by regulators in several states over allegations that their event contracts constitute illegal gambling, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission maintains such products fall under its exclusive jurisdiction as federally regulated derivatives.

The dispute has resulted in conflicting court rulings and prompted calls for Congress to clarify whether sports and political event contracts should be regulated as gambling or federally regulated derivatives.

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