Polymarket becomes first prediction market to be blocked by Lithuanian regulator

Lithuania’s gambling authority has blocked Polymarket following the predictions platform’s attempts to “circumvent restrictions on illegal remote gambling”. The operator is the first in its sector to be restricted by Lošimų priežiūros tarnyba (LPT) as the regulator views its operations as a cover for illegal gambling. It’s far from the first jurisdiction to restrict access to Polymarket, though. Last month, South Korean authorities moved to block access to the platform following a dispute and review that lasted for over a month. Polymarket’s presence in Europe has been massively minimised as several jurisdictions’ regulators have forbidden citizen access. Countries including France, Spain, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, to name a few, have taken action against the operator. European hopes for the US giant may rest in Gibraltar, where a regulated prediction markets framework has been established, and the UK, with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) set to review whether consumers should have greater access to investments. It looks like all hope is lost for Polymarket in Lithuania though. Lithuania adamant Polymarket is gambling “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 regulator said. “Such gambling was organised without a license and permit. “The Supervisory Authority received a decision from the Regional Administrative Court and issued binding instructions to communication service providers to block access to the Polymarket website, and to payment service providers to terminate all payment transactions with the operator of illegal gambling activities, the company Adventure One QSS, Inc.” The LPT claims to have now blocked 2,204 illegal remote gambling websites as it looks to eliminate the black market in Lithuania, which has not been without controversy. Over the summer, the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) alleged that a local Lithuanian fintech, Walletto, had been facilitating transactions to illegal online gambling operators. Estimates from the Blask Index puts the country’s Competitive Earnings Baseline (CEB) at $284.2m (£212m), though nine of Lithuania’s most prolific bookmakers – according to Blask – do not hold a local licence. However, a move to block what has become one of the most notorious companies for illegal operations throughout the world over the past few years is clearly a step in the right direction as the regulator looks to improve channelisation rates. Learn how to integrate responsible gaming into your marketing strategy with a masterclass led by Arjan Korstjens on Thursday 1 October. Get yourself a conference pass by visiting https://sbcevents.com/sbc-summit/masterclasses/