Argentina Officially Bans Polymarket - Here Are the 35+ Countries That Already Did the Same

On March 16, 2026, a Buenos Aires court issued a nationwide block of Polymarket, the decentralized prediction market platform.

The ruling, handed down by Judge Susana Parada, classifies Polymarket as an unlicensed online gambling operation under Section 301 bis of Argentina’s National Criminal Code – a provision that explicitly prohibits gambling conducted without state authorization. The National Communications Entity (ENACOM) has been tasked with coordinating ISPs to implement the block, while Google and Apple have been ordered to remove the app from their stores for Argentine users.

As reported by Colin Wu (crypto journalist and founder of Wu Blockchain), the complaint was brought jointly by the Buenos Aires City Lottery (LOTBA) and the Argentine Chamber of Casinos and Bingos (CASCBA). Critics were quick to note the conflict of interest: LOTBA is itself a state-sanctioned gambling monopoly with a direct financial interest in removing a competitor. The court’s framing of the ban as consumer protection sat uneasily with that reality.

The Incident That Forced Regulators’ Hand

What accelerated the ruling was a specific incident. Approximately 15 minutes before INDEC – Argentina’s national statistics agency – published the official February inflation figure of 2.9%, Polymarket registered a sharp and sudden market reversal. Accounts with histories of low-volume trading placed large directional bets at a moment that suggested access to non-public data.

Authorities and journalists flagged the movement as potential insider trading, and regulators used the episode to secure a total block. Argentina is now the second South American country to fully ban the platform, following Colombia’s prohibition in September 2025.

A Global Crackdown Already in Motion

Argentina’s decision is part of a broader and accelerating international trend. As of March 2026, Polymarket is restricted or fully blocked in more than 35 countries. The pace of new bans has quickened considerably over the past six months, driven by two hardening regulatory concerns: financial incentives around domestic elections, and the use of prediction markets to profit from insider access to government data.

In Europe, France blocked access in November 2024 after a single trader reportedly profited close to $80 million on the U.S. presidential election, triggering a probe by the National Gaming Authority (ANJ). The Netherlands imposed a fine of €420,000 per week until Polymarket successfully geoblocked Dutch residents. Portugal and Hungary both issued emergency shutdown orders in January 2026, citing suspicious betting volumes exceeding €100 million during their respective national elections.

Outside Europe, Australia enforces a full block, while Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan limit existing users to withdrawals only, prohibiting new bets or registrations. Brazil is currently deliberating similar action, and observers note that Argentina’s ruling may serve as a legal template for authorities in both Brazil and Chile.

The One Market Moving in the Opposite Direction

The United States remains a notable exception to the global trend. Polymarket is still geoblocked for U.S. IP addresses on its main site, but in late 2025 the platform acquired QCX LLC – a CFTC-regulated exchange – and launched a separate, compliant domestic version. The path has not been frictionless: Tennessee and Connecticut have issued cease-and-desist orders that are now subject to ongoing federal litigation over the boundary between state and federal gambling authority. Still, the U.S. trajectory is toward regulated access rather than prohibition – a contrast that stands out sharply against the rest of the world.

The $LIBRA Scandal and Milei’s Mounting Legal Exposure

Running parallel to the Polymarket ban is a separate and politically significant crisis for President Javier Milei. The federal investigation into the “$LIBRA” cryptocurrency affair – dubbed “Cryptogate” in Argentine media – escalated sharply this week, following forensic analysis of devices belonging to Mauricio Novelli, a crypto lobbyist identified as a central intermediary.

The scandal stems from a memecoin Milei promoted in February 2024. After the presidential endorsement, the token’s market cap reached $4.5 billion. Within five hours, eight wallets linked to developers Hayden Davis and Kelsier Ventures liquidated over $107 million in holdings. The token then collapsed 95%, leaving an estimated 114,000 wallets worthless and total investor losses estimated between $250 million and $4 billion.

Forensic Evidence Narrows Milei’s Room to Maneuver

Federal Prosecutor Eduardo Taiano has shifted the investigation’s framing from negligent promotion toward potential bribery and criminal association. A note recovered from Novelli’s phone, dated February 11, 2025, outlines a three-tier payment plan totaling $5 million: $1.5 million upfront, $1.5 million upon Milei’s public endorsement on X, and $2 million upon signing a government consulting contract tied to blockchain and AI. Call logs show Milei exchanged at least five calls with Novelli in the minutes before the token launched – directly contradicting his claim of having no prior knowledge of the project’s details. Forensic experts further testified that the contract address Milei posted was not publicly available at the time of the tweet, suggesting it was sent to him by the developers directly.

Opposition legislators Leandro Santoro and Claudio Lozano have filed for impeachment on grounds of misconduct and criminal association. The case has drawn U.S. scrutiny as well, given that Davis is a U.S. citizen and Kelsier Ventures is Delaware-registered; New York firm Burwick Law has filed a class-action suit on behalf of affected investors. Milei maintains the post was personal, not presidential, and his spokesman Manuel Adorni has dismissed the forensic documents as rumor. The $LIBRA affair nonetheless represents the most serious threat to his presidency to date – striking directly at his core political identity as an anti-corruption outsider with command of economic policy.

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