Seven European regulators confront prediction markets
Europe's main gambling authorities met in Rome to align positions on the expansion of prediction markets, also known as cross-betting, a new category of digital platforms that is forcing regulators to review their frameworks. The working meeting, held on Friday, May 22, brought together delegations from Spain, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Portugal, and the United Kingdom around an agenda focused on compliance and illegal online gambling.
Spain was represented by the Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling, under the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and Agenda 2030, a move that complements the recent precautionary blocking of Polymarket and Kalshi in Spanish territory. The stated objective of the summit was to analyze the technical and legal impact of predictive markets and to reach a consensus on fundamental criteria for products that already operate beyond sports and are applied to electoral processes, macroeconomic indicators, and other events of public relevance.
European regulators agree that these platforms act as financial intermediaries between individuals, without setting odds like a classic operator, which creates a complex regulatory fit and opens potential avenues for evasion. The discussion in Rome revolved around how to frame these modalities within national definitions of gambling, what requirements to demand from their operators, and how to articulate technical monitoring that is operational across borders.
The summit also followed up on agreements reached at the previous meeting in Madrid, focusing on the real-time exchange of information to combat illegal gambling. Two other concerns crossed the agenda: digital advertising and indirect promotion channels, especially affiliate marketing and odds comparison websites, and the divergences between payment gateways for land-based and online gambling, linked to fraud prevention, anti-money laundering, and player protection.
The European movement raises immediate questions for Latin America, where predictive markets have been gaining ground without a specific framework. Brazil moved forward this month with Resolution 5.298 of the National Monetary Council, which aims to frame this type of platform, while in Argentina and Colombia the debate is still open. If Europe consolidates a common position to treat Polymarket, Kalshi, and other actors as regulated gambling operators, the pressure on Latin American regulators to define their own criteria will intensify in the coming months.
Tags: Europe, predictive markets, online gambling regulation Europe, DGOJ Spain, Polymarket, Kalshi, iGaming compliance