Polymarket Takes Dutch Regulator To Court Over €420,000 Weekly Fine
Polymarket is mounting a legal challenge in the Netherlands against the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Dutch gambling regulator, seeking to overturn its finding that the prediction-market platform offers illegal gambling to Dutch users.
The KSA issued a last onder dwangsom, an order backed by a recurring financial penalty, against Adventure One QSS Inc., the company operating under the Polymarket brand, according to the regulator's own notice.
The regulator says Polymarket must stop offering its contracts on the Dutch market immediately or face a penalty of €420,000 per week, capped at €840,000 in total.
The Regulator's Position
Polymarket has been heavily covered in Dutch media in recent months, particularly around wagers tied to the Netherlands' general election.
The regulator says that despite contact with the company about its unlicensed activity, no visible change occurred, and its contracts remained available to Dutch users.
Ella Seijsener, the KSA's director of licensing and supervision, said: “Prediction markets are on the rise, including in the Netherlands. These kinds of companies offer wagers that are simply not permitted on our market, including for licence holders. Alongside the societal risks of this kind of prediction activity, such as the potential influence on elections, we have determined that this constitutes illegal gambling. Anyone without a KSA licence has no business operating in our market, including these new gambling platforms.”
While You Are Here, Why Not Check Out Our: Casino Games Hub & Free Slots?
Polymarket's Legal Argument
Polymarket is now taking its case to court in The Hague rather than comply with the order, according to EU Startups News.
The company's core argument is that its contracts function as financial derivatives rather than gambling products, a classification that would subject its activity to financial market regulation rather than Dutch gambling law.
The case is being watched as a test of how European regulators will treat prediction markets going forward, since different jurisdictions have reached different conclusions about whether such platforms should be regulated as betting services or financial instruments.
What's Next?
The KSA has previously rejected an earlier appeal from Polymarket over the same penalty, maintaining that the platform's offering constitutes unlicensed gambling under Dutch law.
The outcome of the new court challenge in The Hague could set a precedent for how prediction markets are classified elsewhere in Europe, where regulatory approaches to the format remain inconsistent.
Readers looking to see how regulators across Europe are treating newer betting formats can find further context in gambling.com's betting sites hub.
