Romania’s National Gambling Office (ONJN) has officially added Polymarket, one of the largest blockchain-based prediction platforms, to its list of prohibited online services. The regulator argues that Polymarket is effectively offering unlicensed gambling by allowing users to wager on the outcomes of real-world events.
According to ONJN, Polymarket’s markets constitute counterparty betting, where users place value — whether traditional currency or crypto — on the results of future events. Under Romanian law, such activity is classified as gambling and requires regulatory approval.
ONJN President Vlad-Cristian Soare emphasized that the ruling has nothing to do with blockchain technology itself, but rather with compliance obligations:
“If you stake money on the outcome of a future event — whether in lei or in cryptocurrency — it is considered gambling and must be licensed,” he said.
Soare added that the agency will not allow blockchain terminology or decentralized architecture to be used as a loophole to avoid gambling oversight.
The decision follows a surge of interest in Polymarket’s election-related markets during Romania’s recent local elections. The market tracking the Bucharest mayoral race alone reportedly attracted over $16 million in volume, while previous high-profile election markets on the platform have reached hundreds of millions of dollars in total bets.
Polymarket has not yet issued a public response to the blacklisting.
This is not the first time the platform has faced regulatory pressure. In 2022, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) fined the company and restricted its operations in the United States. Polymarket later re-entered the market by acquiring licensed derivatives exchange QCX, enabling it to resume U.S. access under compliance rules.
Earlier this year, Polymarket also confirmed plans to launch its POLY token, along with an associated airdrop program.
