Denmark blocks prediction betting site Polymarket over gambling law

Denmark has blocked access to prediction betting platform Polymarket after a court ruled that the site violates the country's gambling law, Danish public broadcaster DR reported Wednesday.

The ruling by the Frederiksberg Court followed a lawsuit filed by the Danish Gambling Authority against telecommunications company Telenor.

Under an industry agreement, other telecommunications providers are also required to block the site.

Polymarket allows users to place bets on the outcomes of future events, including political developments, wars and the deaths of public figures.

Unlike traditional betting platforms, users on Polymarket bet against each other rather than against a bookmaker.

The platform said it was "disappointed" by the Danish decision and planned to challenge it through legal proceedings.

Polymarket described prediction markets as "an important innovation within the financial digital market" and said it does not take a position in any market or profit from any outcome.

Danish Tax Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt welcomed the court ruling, saying companies targeting Danish consumers must comply with Danish rules.

"If you want to play in the Danish market, you must also play by the Danish rules," he said in a written comment.

Engel-Schmidt also referred to Polymarket's markets involving deaths and wars.

"We're talking about people losing their lives. About families losing their loved ones. About wars that destroy entire societies. And then someone sits there and says, 'What if we could bet on when it happens?' It's crazy," he said.

"A human life is not a lottery ticket," he added.

Liberal Alliance business spokesperson Steffen Frolund said prediction markets can be useful for assessing future events.

He compared them with the insurance industry, where companies assess the probability of negative events.

"There is a party on one side who takes some risk for an outcome, and a party on the other side who is exempt from the risk of an outcome. So it is actually very comparable," Frolund said.