The Czech Finance Ministry added Polymarket to its List of Unauthorized Internet Games on July 13, with internet service providers given 15 days to block access to the platform. The ministry classified Polymarket as unlicensed gambling operating without adequate supervision, according to the country's Institute for Gambling Regulation, which announced the listing on Tuesday. The decision continues a European regulatory trend treating prediction markets as gambling products requiring national licensing, occurring days after Gibraltar launched the world's first dedicated prediction-market regulatory framework.
Czech Regulator Cites Supervision Gaps and Market Integrity Risks
Jan Řehola, director of the Institute for Gambling Regulation, stated the ministry's classification reflects fundamental oversight differences. "With legal gambling, the state knows who runs the game, who takes part, which bets are suspicious, and what mechanisms are meant to protect players and market integrity," Řehola said. "Prediction markets, by contrast, open up betting on practically any event -- from the weather to political decisions to security operations -- but without comparable oversight. That is not innovation without risk. It is a gambling product outside the rules."
Řehola identified a specific risk in prediction-market structure: contracts settling on real-world outcomes create incentives to influence those events or trade on non-public information. The institute noted this concern has followed Polymarket in other jurisdictions, referencing episodes where traders profited from contracts on geopolitical and security events.
The platform operates as a decentralized exchange settling in USDC stablecoin rather than through licensed local operators, placing it outside frameworks European regulators use to authorize betting services. The ministry's blocklist already contains several thousand websites.
Italy, Netherlands, and ESMA Intensify Prediction-Market Restrictions
The Institute for Gambling Regulation stated a wide range of EU countries restricted or blocked Polymarket in recent months, with pressure intensifying this month. Italy re-added Polymarket to its blocked list and the Netherlands rejected the platform's appeal.
The EU's markets watchdog ESMA warned this month that event contracts meeting the definition of financial instruments are already barred from retail sale under existing binary-options rules. The regulatory actions coincide with prediction-market trading volumes reaching record highs driven partly by the World Cup, an event with large European audiences.
Gibraltar and Malta Pursue Alternative Licensing Frameworks
Gibraltar launched a bespoke regulatory framework for prediction markets this week -- the first dedicated regime of its kind -- carving the sector out of its general gambling law and licensing operators rather than blocking them. Malta stated it is exploring a similar regime.
The result is a widening European regulatory split: most national regulators treat prediction markets as unlicensed gambling and block them, while a small number of jurisdictions compete to become the sector's regulated home.
FAQ
What did the Czech Finance Ministry do to Polymarket on July 13?
The Czech Finance Ministry added Polymarket to its List of Unauthorized Internet Games on July 13, ordering internet service providers to block access to the platform within 15 days.
Why did Czech regulators classify Polymarket as unlicensed gambling?
Jan Řehola, director of the Institute for Gambling Regulation, stated Polymarket operates without the supervision mechanisms legal gambling provides, including identification of operators, participants, suspicious bets, and player protection measures. The platform's decentralized structure settling in USDC stablecoin places it outside frameworks European regulators use to authorize betting services.
How does Gibraltar's approach to prediction markets differ from Czech regulations?
Gibraltar launched the world's first dedicated prediction-market regulatory framework this week, licensing operators rather than blocking them. Malta is exploring a similar regime. This contrasts with the Czech approach and recent actions by Italy and the Netherlands, which treat prediction markets as unlicensed gambling requiring blocking.
