Brazil blocks 27 prediction markets
- Brazil’s government said on April 24 it ordered internet providers to block 28 prediction-market platforms, treating them as illegal betting operations. - The blocked sites include Polymarket and Kalshi, and Anatel said it alerted more than 19,000 internet-access providers to cut access immediately. - The move pairs a site block with new derivatives rules taking effect May 4. (bcb.gov.br)
Brazil said on April 24 that it had blocked 28 prediction-market platforms, including Polymarket and Kalshi, and told internet providers to cut access. (gov.br) (bloomberg.com) Finance Ministry officials said those platforms work like fixed-odds betting sites because users stake money on future events with preset payouts. The government announced the move at a Brasília press conference led by acting Finance Minister Dario Durigan and Chief of Staff Minister Miriam Belchior. (gov.br) Anatel council member Octávio Pieranti said the telecom regulator notified more than 19,000 internet-access providers to block the 28 named companies immediately. The same government statement said the sites were already blocked as of April 24. (gov.br) Brazil paired the enforcement action with a new financial-market rule. Resolution No. 5,298, issued by the National Monetary Council on April 24, bans derivative contracts in Brazil tied to sports, online-game, political, electoral, social, cultural and entertainment events. (bcb.gov.br) That rule also says the ban applies to offers made in Brazil for derivatives traded abroad, closing a route foreign platforms could have used to keep serving Brazilian users. The resolution takes effect on May 4, 2026. (bcb.gov.br) (lefosse.com) A Finance Ministry technical note dated April 23 says so-called “prediction markets” are illegally offering fixed-odds bets in Brazil. The note frames the products as gambling even when platforms market them as investments or user-to-user contracts. (gov.br 1) (gov.br 2) The government linked the crackdown to household-finance and consumer-protection concerns. In its April 24 statements, Brasília said the goal was to reduce families’ exposure to unsafe practices and to tighten a broader campaign against illegal betting. (gov.br 1) (gov.br 2) That broader campaign is already large. Separate April 24 government releases said Brazil had blocked more than 39,000 irregular betting sites and removed 203 apps operating outside federal rules. (gov.br 1) (gov.br 2) The result is that Brazil is no longer treating event contracts as a gray area between finance and gaming. It is treating them as bets, blocking the sites now and banning the underlying contracts on May 4. (bcb.gov.br) (gov.br)
