In brief
- A Buenos Aires court has ordered access to Polymarket blocked in Argentina.
- The order includes a nationwide ISP block and the removal of Polymarket’s app from the Google and Apple app stores.
- Prosecutors argued the platform operated as “a concealed online betting system.”
A court in Buenos Aires has ordered the blocking of prediction market platform Polymarket in Argentina, according to reports in local media.
The order, issued by Judge Susana Parada following an investigation led by prosecutor Juan Rozas from the city’s specialized gambling prosecution office, directs telecom authorities to implement network-level access restrictions and requires the removal of the Polymarket app from Google and Apple’s app stores in the country.
Prosecutors argued that Polymarket functioned as a “concealed online betting system” and did not apply identity and age-verification controls required under gambling oversight frameworks. “This meant that anyone – including children and adolescents – could access the platform and begin betting without any kind of control,” prosecutors concluded.
The case was initiated after action by Buenos Aires city gambling regulators, who argued the service was operating without proper authorization.
The decision surfaced publicly during heightened scrutiny of prediction-market trading linked to Argentina’s February inflation release, after contract activity accelerated shortly before the official data print—sparking speculation about access to the official index ahead of its release.
Prediction markets face pushback
The nationwide block is the latest in a wave of regulatory pushback targeting prediction markets, with platforms including Polymarket and Kalshi facing legal or regulatory challenges in jurisdictions including France, Germany, Italy, Australia, Singapore, Portugal, Hungary, Thailand and the Netherlands.
In the U.S., prediction markets are caught up in an ongoing legal battle with state gaming regulators, despite a 2024 federal ruling which established that event contracts aren’t inherently gambling under federal law. The tension between state regulators and federal jurisdiction is likely to escalate, according to former Interim CFTC Chair Caroline Pham, who earlier this month argued that “I 100% think it’s going to go to the Supreme Court.”
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