Lithuanian Regulator Blocks Polymarket After Classifying Prediction Products as Illegal Gambling

Lithuania’s gambling regulator has ordered Polymarket blocked in the jurisdiction after determining the platform offers illegal gambling. The Supervisory Authority directed Internet Service Providers to restrict access to the website and instructed payment providers to terminate all transactions with the operator. The measure received approval from the Regional Administrative Court.

This represents the first time the Lithuanian gambling authority has moved against the prediction market sector. The regulator reached its conclusion despite the platform’s description of its service as a system for participants to trade predictions on event outcomes.

Regulator Determines Prediction Markets Show Signs of Betting

In a statement the Lithuanian regulator said: “Although the website stated that it provided the opportunity to participate in a “prediction market” – a system in which participants trade with each other by buying or selling their predictions of the outcome of an event, the investigation identified signs of gambling – betting.”

The action follows comparable steps in Spain, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, France and Denmark. Denmark recently blocked Polymarket as part of action against 98 illegal gambling websites. South Korea blocked the platform and referred 18 individuals to prosecutors for placing trades on it. As reported by GamblingNews, the Lithuanian decision forms part of a widening pattern of regulatory concern.

Limits of Prediction Market Framing in Regulated Markets

The consistent findings across these jurisdictions suggest prediction markets are being measured against established gambling definitions rather than accepted on their own terms. Platforms face immediate operational barriers once a regulator reaches this view, with both access and payment rails severed. The absence of any licensing pathway mentioned in the enforcement leaves compliance routes unclear for operators in similar environments.

Reporting: GamblingNews

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