By SectorWire desk ·
ESMA has warned prediction market businesses that some contracts fall within existing restrictions on binary options. The clarification concerns European financial regulation.
Some prediction market contracts fall within existing financial restrictions.
Request a correction / right of reply
Linked through shared companies, regulators and people, or one step further through the graph.
A coordinated framework could reduce fragmented oversight by assessing prediction products by legal features and risks.
ESMA’s call for continued monitoring signals regulatory scrutiny for prediction market platforms serving retail traders.
Polymarket and Kalshi’s European expansion accompanies ESMA calls for monitoring insider trading, manipulation and potential retail harm.
ESMA warns European operators face a different regulatory environment from the United States for prediction markets.
ESMA’s report highlights blurred boundaries between financial instruments, prediction markets and gambling, explicitly naming Polymarket and Kalshi.