France’s National Gambling Authority has ordered internet service providers to block Polymarket, escalating a regulatory dispute that began in 2024. Summary France ordered internet providers to block Polymarket after earlier geoblocking failed to restrict local access. ANJ cited illegal gambling, absent identity checks, and concerns that weather sensors may be hacked. Czech and EU actions show prediction markets face growing pressure across several regulatory frameworks worldwide. The Autorité nationale des jeux, known as the ANJ, said the prediction market platform promotes gambling services that are not authorized under French law. France ordered the block on July 16 after the ANJ said users had circumvented an earlier geoblocking measure. The regulator has monitored Polymarket since November 2024 over concerns that its prediction markets amount to unauthorized gambling services in the country. France moves from geoblocking to an ISP block The ANJ said prediction market websites qualify as illegal gambling services under French law. It also warned that promoting an unauthorized gambling platform can carry a fine of up to €100,000. The same penalty can apply to people who publicly share odds or payout ratios to promote unlicensed gambling services. The regulator said Polymarket’s audience in France continued to grow despite the earlier restriction. It recorded 578,751 visits and 205,057 unique visitors in June 2026. The ANJ said the platform’s homepage continued to display live odds, which it viewed as promotion of an unauthorized service. The authority blocked 1,290 URLs in 2025 under its administrative powers. France is not the only European country taking action against the platform. The Czech Republic recently ordered internet service providers to block Polymarket, as reported by crypto.news, after authorities classified the platform as an unauthorized gambling service. Regulator raises questions over user checks and market integrity The ANJ also cited concerns about how some event markets operated. It said some bets “appeared to be rigged” and that weather sensors linked to certain markets “may have been hacked.” French prosecutors opened a cybercrime investigation on May 4, with the case assigned to the Office for Combating Cybercrime. According to the regulator, the investigation also found that Polymarket services available to French and European users lacked an adequate user identification system. The ANJ said stronger identity and location checks would be needed to prevent people in France from accessing the platform. Concerns about how prediction markets settle contracts have also attracted academic attention. A Stanford-led study identified possible incentives for settlement-price manipulation, as reported by crypto.news. The research examined five-minute Bitcoin prediction markets and estimated that about $1.28 million shifted from regular traders to more sophisticated participants. European scrutiny of prediction markets keeps growing Regulators across Europe are taking different approaches to prediction markets. Some authorities treat the platforms as gambling services, while financial regulators are assessing whether certain contracts fall under securities or derivatives rules. The European Securities and Markets Authority recently said some event-based contracts could qualify as financial instruments under MiFID II. As reported by crypto.news, contracts that fall under those rules could also face existing European restrictions on binary options offered to retail traders. The different approaches reflect the structure of prediction markets, where users trade contracts based on the outcome of elections, sporting events, economic releases and other future events. France has taken the position that Polymarket operates as an unauthorized gambling service and has now moved from restricting transactions to blocking access to the website. Polymarket also faces pressure outside France Polymarket and other prediction market operators are also facing legal disputes in the United States. Kentucky sued several platforms, including Polymarket and Kalshi, accusing them of offering sports betting without state licenses. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission later challenged state intervention in federally regulated event contracts. The regulator’s dispute with Kentucky is part of a broader fight over who has authority to oversee prediction markets. The CFTC sued Kentucky as the regulatory conflict widened, as reported by crypto.news. Polymarket has also faced security concerns. A frontend phishing attack resulted in losses of about $3.1 million across 11 wallets, with affected users set to receive refunds. France’s latest order adds to the growing number of restrictions facing prediction market platforms. The ANJ said it would continue monitoring Polymarket and any measures introduced to verify users’ identities and locations before they can access its services.
