Indian users trying to access Polymarket now see a connection error page. On April 25, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) instructed internet service providers and VPN operators to block access to “illegal and blocked prediction market and online betting platforms,” with Polymarket listed as a primary target.
Sources familiar with the matter told local media that MeitY has issued a blocking order against Polymarket and could soon take similar action against Kalshi, a U.S.-regulated prediction market platform overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As of publication, Kalshi remains accessible inside India. The legal basis is the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025 (PROG), which categorizes prediction markets as “online money games” – any platform allowing users to deposit real money on uncertain outcomes can be deemed prohibited betting activity, regardless of how the operator frames the service.
Blocking Details: Polymarket Tagged as Illicit Gambling
Government officials argue that binary event speculation platforms expose users, especially younger digital natives, to financial distress and gambling-related harm. Regulatory documents under the PROG framework further describe offshore prediction markets as high-risk due to their reliance on crypto payments and stablecoin settlement systems outside traditional oversight.
The crackdown on prediction markets is part of a broader regulatory push. The Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India have repeatedly flagged concerns that decentralized platforms allow capital to move outside the domestic banking system via stablecoins like USDC. Parliamentary discussions on virtual digital assets treat these channels as potential routes for tax evasion and unmonitored capital outflows. Earlier this week, India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance met representatives from exchanges including Binance, WazirX, and ZebPay in New Delhi to discuss taxation and regulation. Local reports say committee members raised “serious concerns” over large capital movements through crypto channels.
India’s Shadow Ban Approach and Crypto Taxation
Rather than a direct constitutional ban on cryptocurrencies, India employs what industry participants call a “shadow ban” strategy: a flat 30% tax on crypto gains plus 1% tax deducted at source on each transaction, while placing the sector under Financial Intelligence Unit monitoring and compliance rules. Citing regulatory uncertainty and restrictive taxes, several crypto startups have relocated to jurisdictions like Dubai and Singapore.
Global Pressure on Prediction Markets Intensifies
Outside India, prediction markets face mounting obstacles. In March, a Buenos Aires court ordered internet providers to block Polymarket, ruling it operated outside Argentina’s gambling framework. Authorities there raised concerns over crypto payments, weak identity verification, and markets tied to sensitive economic data. More recently, Minnesota became the first U.S. state to ban prediction markets. Last year, Colombia and Romania also restricted Polymarket after classifying it as unauthorized gambling.
Polymarket has not publicly responded to the India block. crypto.news did not receive comments by press time.