An unnamed prediction markets platform could find itself in legal trouble with Ireland’s High Court sooner rather than later, the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRA) has confirmed.
In an interview with RTÉ This Week, GRAI’s Chief Executive Officer Anne Marie Caulfield noted that the regulator might go ahead and file legal proceedings with the High Court against “one of the largest prediction market operators in the world” over illegally targeting Irish consumers.
This, however, is the exemption rather than the norm.
Caulfield added: “For the vast majority of cases where we’ve intervened, they [global prediction market companies] have withdrawn their sites.
“But in the instance where they don’t do so, we can go to the High Court and get a blocking order for them, a blocking order for access to the site and also in relation to the funding involved.”
Ireland’s gambling market went through a major reform with the introduction of the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, which paved the way for the creation of GRAI in 2025. The regulator recently took charge of the licensing process for online gambling.
However, it still lacks powers to directly enforce IP blocking on Internet Service Providers (ISPs), instead relying on legal threats to force non-compliant websites to geoblock their services from Ireland.
As it is. the regulator actually possesses very little in its arsenal to combat offshore operators.
A threat of a legal proceeding which can prove costly for GRAI and take a considerable amount of time does not carry an immediate danger with it. Therefore, the unnamed operator could refuse to fully back off for the time being, but now it knows GRAI has its crosshairs on it.
Ireland joins European blockade of prediction markets
Meanwhile in France, Polymarket – which fits right into Caulfield’s description of “one of the largest prediction market operators in the world” with a valuation of US$15bn (€13.1bn/£11.4bn) – has been completely banned by the French regulator ANJ.
Reports emerged that punters are still putting money into the website despite an earlier blockade from 2024 on financial transactions to the platform, prompting ANJ action.
The prediction markets operator is also on Italy’s list of illegal gambling operators. In fact, both Italy and France are part of a coalition agreement between nine European states that have firmly opposed any prediction platforms entering their respective jurisdiction.
Still, EU member Gibraltar not only recently licensed two prediction markets platforms but has also just enacted the first dedicated regulatory framework for prediction markets in the world.
There’s a clear divide forming around the emerging space – with a hard border at the Gibraltar Customs stopping the vertical from progressing into mainland Europe, at least for now.