France blocked Polymarket after its transaction controls failed to stop 578,751 new French visitors
France’s gambling regulator ordered ISPs to block Polymarket after concluding that a prior transaction geofence was being bypassed and that the site still promoted unauthorized gambling to French users. The ANJ said Polymarket drew a large French audience and that its live odds and homepage acted as marketing for an illegal offering. This follows a 2024 notice to Polymarket’s operator and an earlier restriction on transactions from France. The key point is that on-chain settlement did not prevent regulation: France targeted the website, access layer, and discovery channels rather than the blockchain contracts themselves. Under French law, the ANJ can order access blocks and de-indexing of illegal online gambling interfaces. The case shows that prediction markets remain vulnerable at the front end even if settlement happens on-chain. Similar actions are spreading across Europe, creating a patchwork of national restrictions and pressure for stronger identity checks, consumer protections, or licensing.
