Polymarket blocks French users amid gambling law investigation

Blockchain-based prediction platform Polymarket has blocked users in France following an investigation by French gaming regulator Autorité Nationale des Jeux.

The move comes amid scrutiny of the platform’s compliance with French gambling laws and controversy over a French trader who bet tens of millions of dollars on Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US presidential election, according to Fortune.

According to X screenshots seen by Crypto.news, the restriction prevents users in France from betting or transacting on Polymarket, although the platform remains accessible in view-only mode.

Theo’s Trump claim

France’s ANJ reportedly began investigating the platform after an anonymous French user nicknamed “Théo” bet over $30 million on Trump’s election outcome.

Théo ultimately made a profit of approximately $80 million from the bets, raising concerns about potential market manipulation and insider trading.

Operating using cryptocurrencies, Polymarket allows users to bet on the outcomes of real-world events such as elections or sports results. These markets are powered by blockchain technology, which makes transactions transparent but also raises legal compliance questions in certain jurisdictions.

Gambling regulators in France classify such activities as unlicensed betting, which is prohibited under national law.

The French regulator’s scrutiny, reportedly driven by the scale of Théo’s betting activity, may have pressured Polymarket to impose similar restrictions on users in France.

Polymarket’s latest activity in the USA

While Polymarket has restricted US users since 2022 due to an agreement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, France has been an important market for the platform.

Following the US elections, federal agents from the FBI seized mobile devices belonging to Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan during a search of his Soho property. Agents woke Coplan at 6 a.m. but did not inform him of the reasons for the investigation.