Czech Republic Blocks Polymarket

The Czech Republic is set to block access to Polymarket after the Ministry of Finance classified the platform as an illegal gambling service. It has been added to the country's blacklist of unauthorized online gambling websites, giving internet service providers 15 days to restrict access. The ministry's blacklist already contains thousands of domains.

According to Czech regulators, prediction markets function as gambling regardless of how they are marketed. Authorities argue that Polymarket operates outside the country's regulatory framework, leaving users without the safeguards that apply to licensed gambling operators.

Jan Řehola, Director of the Institute for Gambling Regulation, said that legal gambling allows authorities to monitor operators, participants, and suspicious betting activity. Prediction markets, on the other hand, enable users to wager on virtually any event—from weather forecasts to political decisions and security-related developments—without comparable oversight.

Řehola also warned that prediction markets could create incentives to influence real-world events or exploit non-public information for financial gain. Similar concerns have been raised in the past following trading activity linked to geopolitical events and national security issues.

Polymarket operates as a decentralized platform that settles transactions in the USDC stablecoin rather than through a licensed gambling operator. This structure places it outside the regulatory systems commonly used by European authorities.

The Institute noted that several EU member states have restricted access to Polymarket in recent months. In July, Italy once again added the platform to its list of blocked websites, while the Netherlands rejected the company's appeal. During the same month, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) warned that certain event-based contracts could fall under existing restrictions on products offered to retail investors.

Not every European jurisdiction is taking the same approach. Gibraltar has introduced the world's first regulatory framework specifically designed for prediction markets, allowing such platforms to obtain licenses. Malta is also considering a similar model. As a result, Europe is increasingly divided between countries seeking to ban prediction market platforms and those aiming to regulate them under a formal legal framework. This debate comes as the sector continues to see record trading volumes, fueled in part by growing interest in prediction contracts tied to the FIFA World Cup.