No regulator wants to sound the kind of alarm where the data not only proves critics right but does so loudly. Yet that is precisely why the Dutch Gambling Authority’s latest...
Polymarket’s appeal over KSA’s penalty denied
The Netherlands’ gambling regulator (KSA) has revealed that it will uphold its initial decision of imposing a penalty on Polymarket for offering illegal gambling to Dutch users, rejecting the operator’s appeal.
Initially, Polymarket faced a KSA fine after missing the ban deadline set for February 17, 2026, by one day, which led to the regulatory authority hitting the prediction platform with a €420,000 weekly penalty. Prior to that, the regulator had ordered Polymarket to stop operations in the Netherlands as its products were classified as gambling under Dutch law.
In a new publication shared on June 23, 2026, addressing Polymarket’s appeal of the decision, the KSA reaffirmed its position of imposing a fine on the prediction market’s operator, Adventure One QSS Inc.
The KSA wrote in a statement:
“Upon reconsideration of the contested decisions, it has been established that the objector violated the prohibition referred to in Article 1, paragraph 1, introductory part and under (a), of the Wok and that the Gaming Authority rightfully imposed an order subject to a penalty payment on the objector.”
Polymarket’s appeal was first filed in March 2026, seeking to reclaim its legal costs and arguing that the platform operated as an interface to an open-source blockchain protocol. At the same time, Polymarket spoke out against the KSA’s classification that it offered gambling products.
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