A Nevada state court has issued a temporary restraining order on Polymarket for offering event contracts, prohibiting it from offering sports and event contracts to Nevada residents.
According to reports, the platform’s activities may have violated the prediction market law, including gambling or placing bets, and is not protected by the “exclusive regulatory authority” under the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Nevada’s court ruling against Polymarket
In an order issued Saturday, Judge Jason Woodbury ruled in favor of the Nevada Gaming Control Board ruling that the Commodity Exchange Act “does not vest exclusive jurisdiction over Polymarket’s contracts with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.”
The report suggested that the order will stop ahead of the February 11 hearing on a preliminary ruling. The judge made it clear that the Commodity Exchange Act does not give the CFTC sole authority over Polymarket’s contracts.
However, if Polymarket operates without state gambling licenses, Nevada regulators would be unable to properly carry out their responsibilities of preventing match fixing, under-aged participation as well as ineligible users.
The court concluded that protecting the integrity of Nevada’s gambling system serves the public interest, which is why it supported issuing a temporary injunction.
“It appears that Polymarket has already ceased offering event contracts in Nevada,” Daniel Wallach said on a X post.
Another company affected by similar demands includes Kalshi, and they may also be required to apply for a gambling license to continue staying in the sports market.
Other similar regulatory measures against Polymarket
Countries like Hungary, Portugal, and the U.S. state of Tennessee have held similar regulatory measures pertaining to Polymarket, taken against their prediction markets, as they do not comply with their standards.
The Hungarian Supervisory Authority for Regulated Activities and the Portuguese Gaming Regulatory Authority have both accused Polymarket of illegal gambling activity, slapping bans on the platform.
The Tennessee Sports Wagering Council had sent out a ‘cease and desist’ letter in order to stop Polymarket from any sport-related markets accessible to Tennessee customers. They also instructed Polymarket to pay off any unsettled bets that had been scheduled but not conducted.
