South Korea moves to block Polymarket over gambling concerns

The Korea Media and Communications Commission has ordered access to the crypto prediction market Polymarket to be blocked in South Korea due to concerns over illegal gambling. The commission determined that Polymarket's structure and operations constitute illegal gambling, despite its noncustodial design and reliance on smart contracts.

The regulator found that Polymarket promotes speculative gambling behavior through its winner-takes-all structure, which enables users to gain or lose money based on outcomes such as politics, sports, and weather. Additionally, the commission cited Polymarket's role in operating markets, setting trading rules, facilitating crypto deposits and withdrawals, and collecting transaction fees as evidence of its gambling nature.

Polymarket argued that it had removed Korean-language services, does not accept Korean won, and operates through noncustodial transactions and smart contracts, but the commission rejected these claims, stating that technical characteristics like decentralization, trading interfaces, and order books do not exempt a service from South Korean law.

Other countries, including France, Australia, and Germany, have also blocked access to Polymarket due to similar gambling-related concerns. JPMorgan Chase has severed banking ties with Polymarket over regulatory worries, as reported in another source.