Bogotá, September 2025. – Polymarket, the blockchain-based prediction market that has raised eyebrows across the U.S. and Europe, is now making waves in Colombia, where its arrival is rattling licensed betting operators. The platform, already notorious for allowing users to wager on political events, has opened prediction markets tied directly to Colombia’s 2026 presidential and congressional elections—a move considered off-limits under Colombian law.
Launched in New York in 2020, Polymarket lets users buy and sell “shares” in the outcome of future events. If the prediction comes true, the shares pay out $1; if not, they become worthless. Transactions are settled in USDC stablecoins via the Polygon blockchain, allowing global access without banks or traditional payment processors.
For Colombia’s regulated sector, this model is disruptive. Licensed operators pay heavy fees to Coljuegos, undergo strict compliance audits, and are barred from offering political wagers. Polymarket, operating offshore and tax-free, bypasses those rules and markets itself as a community-driven forecasting tool rather than a sportsbook.
Achtung! German Gambling Authority issues warning on Polymarket’s ‘event contracts’
The backlash has been immediate. Fecoljuegos, the country’s main industry association, has urged regulators to block Polymarket, citing “unfair competition” and warning that turning elections into betting markets could undermine democratic legitimacy. Critics also fear the platform’s crypto rails could facilitate money laundering or manipulation of political expectations.
Polymarket has been here before. In 2022, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) fined the company $1.4 million for running unregistered derivatives markets. After temporarily shutting out U.S. users, it re-entered the market this year by acquiring a licensed derivatives venue.
What is Polymarket, and why did it catch the attention of ANJ?
Whether Colombia follows suit with enforcement remains unclear. For now, Polymarket’s entry has put operators in checkmate, underscoring the tension between Web3 innovation and local regulation in Latin America’s fastest-growing online betting market.
