France’s gambling regulator, the National Gaming Authority (ANJ), is expected to block access to Polymarket, a major cryptocurrency-based prediction platform. Polymarket gained widespread attention during the recent US presidential election, attracting over $3.2 billion in worldwide bets. The ANJ’s move comes amid concerns over the platform’s classification as a gambling activity under French law.
Lawyers say the ANJ’s actions may include blocking Polymarket’s domain within France and discouraging media outlets and third-party platforms from linking to it. However, due to Polymarket’s lack of user identity checks, users could bypass restrictions by using VPNs. The ANJ is examining Polymarket’s operations and compliance with French gambling legislation, but has not specified a timeline for any expected restrictions.
