South Korean police have booked 26 local Polymarket users for illegal gambling, alleging they placed $12.7 million in cumulative wagers. Investigators traced the users through public blockchain records and have referred 18 cases to prosecutors. While users argue the platform functions as a derivatives market, authorities maintain that wagering assets on uncontrollable outcomes violates Article 246 of the Criminal Act. This dispute follows an August 2026 regulatory order blocking domestic access to Polymarket.
South Korean Polymarket gambling charges
- ▪The Gangwon Provincial Police Agency's Cyber Investigation Unit in South Korea booked 26 Polymarket users on suspicion of illegal gambling.
- ▪The Gangwon Provincial Police Agency's Cyber Investigation Unit referred 18 of the 26 booked Polymarket users to prosecutors by September 15, 2026.
- ▪The 26 booked Polymarket users placed combined wagers of approximately 17.6 billion won, or $12.7 million, on the prediction platform.
- ▪The largest cumulative stake placed by a single individual among the 26 investigated Polymarket users was approximately 5.7 billion won.
Blockchain transaction tracing methods
- ▪South Korean police identified the 26 Polymarket users by analyzing publicly available blockchain transaction records using open-source intelligence techniques.
- ▪South Korean investigators began preliminary inquiries into the Polymarket users in March 2026 and formally booked them starting in May 2026.
Legal classification dispute
- ▪AXIS Law managing partner Kim Tae-rim stated that Polymarket's order-book trading and early position exits could influence the legal debate over its classification.
- ▪The investigated Polymarket users argue that the platform should be classified as a crypto-based derivatives or prediction market rather than conventional gambling.
- ▪AXIS Law managing partner Kim Tae-rim noted that prediction contracts do not fall within South Korea's Capital Markets Act, limiting its use as a criminal defense.
South Korean gambling law framework
- ▪South Korean police cited a 2008 Supreme Court precedent establishing that gambling exists when property is wagered on unpredictable outcomes, even if skill is involved.
- ▪Under Article 246 of South Korea's Criminal Act, gambling carries a fine up to 10 million won, while habitual gambling carries up to three years imprisonment.
- ▪South Korean police argue that Polymarket transactions violate Article 246 of the Criminal Act because users wager property on uncertain outcomes they cannot control.
Polymarket access block
- ▪South Korea's Broadcasting, Media and Communications Review Committee voted on August 18, 2026, to block domestic access to Polymarket.
- ▪South Korean regulators rejected Polymarket's defense that its non-custodial model, lack of won payments, and lack of Korean-language services exempted it from domestic laws.
Debatable claims
- ▪South Korea should not criminally prosecute individual Polymarket users
- ▪Polymarket contracts should be classified as financial derivatives rather than gambling
- ▪South Korea's ban on domestic access to Polymarket is justified
Story comments
Loading comments…