South Korea orders block on Polymarket access
Regulation & Gov ·
The country's media regulator cited gambling risks tied to winner-take-all betting on political, sporting and weather outcomes in its Aug. 18 vote to restrict the platform.
South Korea's media watchdog voted on Aug. 18 to cut off access to Polymarket, pointing to concern that its all-or-nothing wagers on outcomes ranging from elections to sports and even weather conditions function as a form of gambling, according to wublockchain.xyz. The decision places South Korea alongside a growing list of jurisdictions moving to curb the platform's reach.
Polymarket has pushed back on the gambling characterization, arguing that because its system runs on smart contracts and operates as a non-custodial, peer-to-peer network, it never takes direct custody of user funds, per the same report. That defense hinges on a distinction between facilitating a market and holding or controlling the money wagered on it — a line regulators in South Korea appear unwilling to accept for now.
The action is not an isolated case. Coverage from coindesk.com indicates South Korea has become more than the 30th jurisdiction to impose some form of restriction on Polymarket, suggesting a pattern of regulators worldwide treating prediction markets on real-world events as a gambling product rather than a financial or information tool.
What remains unclear is how enforcement will work in practice — whether the block targets domestic access points, app availability, or something broader — and whether Polymarket will seek any formal appeal or adjustment to its offerings in response to South Korea's ruling. Also unresolved is whether the rising count of restricting jurisdictions will prompt a coordinated regulatory stance elsewhere or continue to unfold country by country, each citing similar gambling concerns.