France has ordered internet service providers to block access to Polymarket, the crypto-based prediction market platform, after its national gambling regulator, the Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ), determined that the platform operates as an unauthorised gambling service under French law. The regulator stated that Polymarket will remain blocked until it complies fully with France's gambling framework. The ANJ also warned that displaying live betting odds to users in France constitutes illegal gambling advertising, an offence that can carry fines of up to EUR 100,000.
Background to the investigation
The ANJ opened its investigation into Polymarket in late 2024, after trading activity on the platform increased sharply around the US presidential election. Regulators initially responded by banning payments from French users and restricting access to a view-only mode. Despite these measures, traffic from France continued to grow. According to the ANJ, the platform recorded 578,751 visits from French IP addresses in June 2026, a volume that led the regulator to move towards a full block rather than partial restrictions.
Manipulation and insider trading concerns
The ANJ said prediction markets of this kind carry particular risks, as traders with substantial capital or access to non-public information can influence betting outcomes. The regulator referenced one case in which a trader based in France reportedly moved prediction market odds by placing large-scale bets during US political events, generating profits estimated at approximately EUR 46 million. It also cited an incident involving Météo-France, in which weather data was reportedly compromised to give certain traders an advantage in weather-related markets. The ANJ said such cases illustrate the difficulty of regulating prediction markets under existing gambling law and the need for stronger enforcement measures.
Part of a wider regulatory response
France's action follows similar measures taken elsewhere in Europe. Polymarket is now blocked or subject to significant restrictions in more than 33 countries, including Spain, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Romania, largely due to the absence of local gambling licences. Spain temporarily blocked both Polymarket and Kalshi earlier in 2026, and authorities in the US have also begun reviewing regulatory frameworks for prediction markets.
The restrictions come as Polymarket reports annualised revenue exceeding EUR 920 million, underlining the scale the platform has reached despite an increasingly fragmented regulatory landscape across jurisdictions. The France decision adds to a growing pattern in which regulators are treating blockchain-based prediction markets as gambling products subject to existing licensing regimes, rather than as novel financial or information instruments falling outside such rules. How Polymarket responds to these overlapping restrictions, and whether it pursues licensing in individual markets, may shape the platform's ability to operate within the EU going forward.
