Romania’s National Office for Gambling (ONJN) has blacklisted leading prediction market Polymarket, calling it an unlicensed gambling platform operating outside state oversight.

The decision follows what regulators described as a surge in crypto-based betting during Romania’s presidential and local elections, where Polymarket’s trading volume reportedly exceeded $600 million, according to a recent statement from the regulator.

ONJN added that the platform’s activity constitutes “counterpart betting,” meaning users wager money against one another on the outcomes of future events, a model that falls squarely under gambling laws, regardless of its blockchain-based format.

ONJN President Vlad-Cristian Soare stressed that the…