South Korea has moved to block access to Polymarket, the cryptocurrency-based prediction market, after regulators concluded that the platform provides an illegal gambling environment for domestic users. The decision was made on Aug. 18, 2026, by the country’s media and communications review committee, also identified as the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC), following a months-long review process.
The regulator’s core finding is that Polymarket’s winner-takes-all structure encourages speculative gambling. Users trade shares tied to the outcomes of events including politics, elections, economics, sports and even weather. According to officials, this can produce extreme financial gains or losses based on events that users cannot control. The committee said Polymarket manages market creation, sets trading rules, processes crypto deposits and withdrawals, settles trades, and collects transaction fees — meaning the operator economically benefits from the activity.
Polymarket argued that it does not meet legal requirements for gambling because it operates through non-custodial peer-to-peer transactions and smart contracts. The company said it does not directly collect or manage user funds, does not issue sports promotion betting tickets, and had already removed its Korean-language service. However, regulators rejected these arguments, stating that decentralized technology, the absence of a Korean-language service, or centralized components such as a trading interface and order book do not exempt the platform from South Korean law.
The review committee sought opinions from the National Police Agency, the National Gambling Control Commission and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation. Authorities said the service could fall under provisions covering gambling assistance, opening gambling venues and similar prohibited conduct under the Criminal Act and the National Sports Promotion Act. Regulators also cited a contract on rainfall in Seoul during August as evidence that Polymarket continued offering markets relevant to South Korean users.
The action follows a criminal investigation launched in late May 2026 into Polymarket users over potential illegal gambling through election-related prediction markets. It also comes after a July hearing process in which Polymarket was allowed to explain its business. South Korea now joins a growing list of countries restricting Polymarket, including India, the Czech Republic, France, Argentina, Spain, Australia and Germany.
