France’s gambling authority has mandated ISPs to restrict access to the prediction market’s platform.
France is intensifying its efforts to prevent residents from accessing Polymarket. The Autorité Nationale Des Jeux (ANJ), the nation’s independent body regulating licensed gambling and betting activities, announced this week that it has ordered internet service providers to block the Polymarket website.
This latest action by the ANJ follows a previous initiative from November 2024, which restricted any financial transactions from French citizens on Polymarket. Despite this transaction ban, the agency noted that the site continued to attract users in France who circumvented the restrictions. In June alone, Polymarket recorded 578,751 visits, including 205,057 unique visitors from France. The ANJ has reiterated that this platform is classified as an illegal gambling site and aims to enforce stricter measures.
The new regulation stipulates that individuals promoting unauthorized betting or gambling platforms could face fines of up to 100,000 euros, approximately $114,000. Meanwhile, in Spain, authorities have also ordered the blocking of Polymarket and Kalshi while they investigate potential infringements of national gambling regulations. In the United States, Minnesota has enacted legislation banning prediction markets, with several states pursuing legal action against both Polymarket and Kalshi.
