Singapore, January 12, The Singapore authorities have restricted the so-called Polymarket an exchange for crypto-predictions that falls under gambling as a result of the authorities’ measures against unregistered gambling sites.
Through section 20 of the Gambling Control Act 2022 the Gambling Regulatory Authority banned betting with unregistered companies. Users attempting to access the platform are met with a warning: The message informed you that you have tried accessing an unlawful betting site belonging to an unlawful gambling support supplier.
“Polymarket is officially defined as a gambling website in Singapore. If you want to place a bet, you can only go to a state-owned gambling company. Otherwise, you will face fines and imprisonment.”
Singapore Pools is the only licensed online gambling company in Singapore.” Any persons found guilty of the offense stand to be liable to both fines of up to SG$10,000 and or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or both.
Singapore Police Enforce Gambling
The car launched in August 2022 to legislate modern gambling products has identified over 3,800 sites that offer unlawful gambling since 2015. In its December statement, it pointed to initiatives cut out unlawful transactions of up to SG$37 million ($27 million).
YDAG was launched in December 2020 and is built on the Polygon blockchain where users can bet on global events using USD Coin. However, it has documented $431 million in trading volume up to 2025 with $15 million trading on Super Bowl Championship 2025.
From 1st of January, the Singapore Police Force has taken over legal enforcement of illegal gambling provisions. In GRA statements, it can be understood that Singapore Pools (Private) Limited is the only legal remote betting service provider in the country.
Offenders can be fined up to forty thousand US dollars or be imprisoned for seven years for breaching the law; and offenders are liable to be fined up to fifty thousand Singapore dollars or be imprisoned for up to seven years if they are second-time offenders.
Singapore has not experienced negative repercussions of its strict gambling rules affecting its emergence as a blockchain hub. A study conducted in December of the previous by ApeX Protocol placed the nation among those with more than 1,600 patent blockchain applications, and 81 cryptocurrency exchanges.
On August 2024, the Monetary Authority of Singapore awarded 13 major payment institution licenses which have been issued significantly compared to the licenses issued in year 2023.Involvements of Polymarket remain remain banned and restricted across the world.
The following year, it agreed to do so with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and has to shutdown its operations in United States, agreeing to a $1.4 million penalty. French authorities conducted similar probes of the platform’s compliance, which led to Polymarket banning French users by the end of 2024.
On Jan 8, Coinbase sent a notification to customers about a CFTC subpoena for Polymarket and an inquiry about user data if no legal action is taken by Jan 15.
