A federal court ordered a nationwide block of Polymarket in March 2026, classing it as unlicensed gambling. Argentina also licenses gambling province by province rather than nationally.
Last reviewed 7 May 2026 · Status as of May 2026 · Information, not legal advice
As of May 2026, prediction markets are restricted in Argentina, and the leading venue has been blocked. In March 2026 a federal court in Buenos Aires ordered a nationwide block of Polymarket, classifying it as unlicensed gambling under Article 301 bis of the Penal Code, and directed the telecom regulator ENACOM to enforce the block through internet providers. Apple and Google were ordered to remove the app from Argentine stores. Argentina has no single national gambling regulator, since licensing is handled province by province.
Argentina does not regulate gambling through a single national agency. Licensing is handled at the provincial level, so the City of Buenos Aires runs its own framework through the body known as LOTBA, while other provinces run theirs. Prediction markets have no licence under any of these provincial systems, which left platforms like Polymarket operating outside the authorized market.
That came to a head in March 2026. A federal court in Buenos Aires ordered a nationwide block of Polymarket, classifying it as unlicensed gambling under Article 301 bis of the Penal Code. The court directed the national telecom regulator, ENACOM, to enforce the block through internet providers, and ordered Apple and Google to remove the Polymarket app from their Argentine stores. Prosecutors had described the platform as a hidden online betting system that took wagers without a licence, identity checks, or age limits.
The case escalated after suspicious trading around Argentina's February 2026 inflation data, when a large sum was reportedly placed on the correct figure shortly before the official statistics agency, INDEC, released it. Argentina became one of a growing number of countries to restrict Polymarket. For an Argentine resident, the position as of May 2026 is that the leading prediction market is blocked, these products are treated as unlicensed gambling, and there is no authorized route to use them.
No prediction market holds an Argentine licence, and the leading venue is blocked by court order. The platforms below are listed for context, not as authorized options for an Argentine resident.
Kalshi is a United States designated contract market overseen by the CFTC and is built around United States access. It is not licensed for gambling or financial services in Argentina and offers no licensed route to residents there. See the Kalshi profile.
Polymarket is a crypto settled prediction market that operates without a gambling licence in Argentina. Reachability through a browser or app is not the same as legal availability. See the Polymarket profile.
The Crypto.com event contract product is a United States CFTC listed offering and is not licensed for residents of Argentina. Read the Crypto.com Sports and Events profile.
Positions are as of May 2026 and can change. We link to a platform only where it is genuinely available to a reader. A blocked service is not a legal one.
Argentina licenses gambling at the provincial level rather than nationally, and in March 2026 a federal court ordered a nationwide block of Polymarket as unlicensed gambling. Confirm the current position with the relevant provincial regulator and ENACOM before relying on anything here.
Status as of May 2026. We never invent a citation, and where a position is contested we mark it as contested.
Reaching a blocked or unlicensed service does not make it safe or legal, and recovering funds can be hard. Prediction markets can lose you money. Stake only what you can afford to lose, never to chase a loss, and never on borrowed money. If gambling stops feeling like a free choice, step back and seek support from a problem gambling service in your country.
No, not as offered by the blocked venue. As of May 2026 a federal court has blocked Polymarket nationwide as unlicensed gambling, and there is no national prediction market licence. This is general information, not legal advice.
A Buenos Aires federal court classified it as unlicensed gambling under Article 301 bis of the Penal Code in March 2026, and directed ENACOM to enforce a nationwide block through internet providers.
There is no single national regulator. Gambling is licensed province by province, for example through LOTBA in the City of Buenos Aires.
Scrutiny grew after suspicious trading around Argentina's February 2026 inflation data, when a large bet was reportedly placed on the correct figure shortly before the official release by INDEC.
Because the leading prediction market is blocked and these products are treated as unlicensed gambling for an Argentine resident. We only show an open account or compare path where a platform is genuinely available to you.