Polymarket has been blocked in Lithuania after the country’s gambling authority determined the platform was attempting to circumvent restrictions on illegal remote gambling.
The Lošimų priežiūros tarnyba, known as LPT, is the first regulator in its sector to take action against the prediction markets giant operating in the Baltic region.
Lithuanian authorities concluded that Polymarket’s operations amounted to a cover for illegal gambling activity, despite the platform’s branding as a prediction market service.
The LPT stated that its investigation identified clear signs of gambling within Polymarket’s model, specifically the buying and selling of predictions on event outcomes between participants.
“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.
The regulator confirmed that this activity was organised without a license or permit, placing Polymarket firmly outside the bounds of legal operation in Lithuania.
“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 added.
Lithuania is far from the only jurisdiction to have moved against Polymarket in recent times, with South Korea blocking access to the platform last month following a dispute and review lasting over a month.
Across Europe, Polymarket has seen its presence dramatically reduced as regulators in France, Spain, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands have each taken action against the US-based operator.
There remain some potential footholds for Polymarket in Europe, with Gibraltar having established a regulated prediction markets framework and the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority set to review whether consumers can access the platform.
The outcome in Lithuania, however, appears final, with both communication and payment service providers now under binding instructions to cut off all access to the site and its transactions.
Polymarket’s road to legitimacy in regulated European markets remains difficult, as more jurisdictions continue to interpret its core model as gambling rather than financial prediction trading.
