Crypto playing websites are going through rising authorized stress.
The previous few years have seen a wave of crypto-based casinos and sportsbooks fully flood the market, with complete bets at crypto casinos in Q1 2025 alone reaching over $26 billion.
It’s a fast-growing trade, however after a interval of what can solely be described as a crypto gaming growth, operators at the moment are going through the primary indicators of authorized stress.
Singapore and Belgium Blacklist ‘Prediction’ Playing Website Polymarket, Whereas Australia Bans Crypto Playing Altogether
One of many largest actions within the crypto playing area post-2020 has been the rise of Polymarket, generally known as the world’s largest prediction market, which each Singapore and Belgium have now blacklisted.
The location permits customers to wager on future occasions throughout an enormous vary of markets, from “Who Will Trump Pardon in 2025?” to “#1 Searched Particular person on Google this 12 months?”.
Customers stake crypto on these predictions as an alternative of actual cash and it’s confirmed to be an enormous hit, as The Block’s knowledge exhibits that Polymarket’s month-to-month energetic merchants climbed to an all-time excessive of 477,850 final month.
Nonetheless, in the beginning of the 12 months, Singapore and Belgium opted to ban the favored crypto web site attributable to issues over it being non-compliant with current playing legal guidelines.
It seems as if extra nations are following go well with, with The Romanian Nationwide Workplace for Playing blacklisting Polymarket and stating that it’ll “not enable the transformation of blockchain right into a display for unlawful betting.”
And in the case of the broader crypto playing market, Australia has been far more hands-on.
Since 2024, all licensed playing websites in Australia have been prohibited from accepting crypto funds following an modification to its Interactive Playing Act 2001.
What this implies is that the crypto playing market in Australia is now near non-existent, with many crypto buyers nonetheless sad in regards to the latest regulatory modifications.
US But to Goal Crypto Playing, However Sweepstakes Casinos Take a Hit
Curiously, the US has but to essentially take a stance on crypto playing and the exercise itself stays largely unregulated.
Websites like Stake and Betpanda have already attracted thousands and thousands of gamblers within the States, to this point proving to be a serious hit.
Stake is now the standout participant within the crypto playing area, incomes a reported GGR of $4.7 billion in 2024, placing it proper up there with among the wider playing trade’s largest names like Flutter ($14B) and Entain ($5B).
The tide is unquestionably shifting, with Gen Z and Millennial gamers specifically exhibiting far more of a keenness for crypto-based playing than conventional real-money betting, which is why websites like Stake are rising at such a fast tempo.
Curiously, although, no US state instantly licenses crypto casinos and controlled websites like FanDuel, BetMGM, and DraftKings have stayed effectively away from crypto over time, so this has created a “grey” market the place crypto casinos are working within the US with none actual scrutiny.
Nonetheless, what a rising variety of states within the US have determined to do is goal sweepstakes casinos, with California, Connecticut, and Montana all just lately banning this new sort of on line casino web site.
Many sweepstakes casinos readily settle for crypto as a deposit choice, so it’s an oblique assault on the crypto playing market.
However the primary motive behind the anti-sweepstakes on line casino motion occurring within the US for the time being is extra to do with them exploiting authorized loopholes utilizing digital currencies generally known as ‘Gold Cash’ and ‘Sweeps Cash’.
The latest motion towards sweepstakes casinos does show that crypto casinos may very well be subsequent, although, so operators should wait to see if states flip their consideration to them over the approaching years, which now appears extra seemingly than ever.
Underground US Crypto Casinos Generated $67.1 Billion in 2024
Crypto playing websites like Stake could have big audiences within the US, however the nation itself has an enormous downside in the case of underground crypto playing.
America’s crypto on line casino black market simply generated $67.1 billion in 2024, making it one of the vital profitable underground markets in your entire nation.
Yield Sec’s state-by-state evaluation discovered that California and Texas, two states the place authorized on-line playing itself isn’t even permitted, have an unlawful market share price $5.5 billion and $4.5 billion respectively, exhibiting simply how regarding the situation is.
This has put conventional playing firms, lots of which wrestle to make a revenue, in an unimaginable place, as they spend billions on compliance and taxes whereas underground crypto playing websites are raking in cash.
You’ll assume that DraftKings and others received’t stand for this for much longer, and it’ll seemingly attain a breaking level the place US regulators are both compelled into motion or have to sit down and watch whereas the unregulated crypto playing market within the US fully takes over to the purpose of no return.
Many Websites Provide No-KYC Necessities, Worsening Regulatory Issues
There’s additionally the rising no-KYC controversy, not simply within the US however most of the different nations that at the moment enable crypto casinos to function.
Wager Panda, Fortunate Block, and plenty of different crypto casinos reportedly function with minimal or no-KYC necessities in any respect, which is clearly enticing to gamers who want to gamble in full privateness with none checks.
Nonetheless, this makes cash laundering, underage playing, and different comparable points more likely to return to the forefront, once more elevating issues that extra nations should tackle sooner fairly than later.
Why Crypto Playing Is Scorching Proper Now and Possible Received’t Disappear
As we head into 2026, it’s reached a degree the place wherever between a 3rd to half of all cryptocurrency transactions worldwide are gambling-related.
These transactions are largely going down throughout crypto-based playing websites, lots of that are fully unlawful.
The advantages? Except for elevated privateness, on line casino followers and sports activities bettors alike get quicker transactions, decrease charges, and a bunch of different advantages, so you’ll be able to’t essentially blame them for having fun with the crypto playing area.
A rising variety of nations at the moment are banning crypto playing or, on the very least, beginning to take a a lot nearer have a look at it, although, which is why the expectation is that the US will quickly begin to crack down on it.
It’s extremely tough to manage a market that’s largely offshore and permits customers to gamble with digital cryptocurrencies not tied to any sort of presidency, so the US and different nations actually have their work minimize out for them.
The purpose ought to, in fact, be to encourage the continued development of cryptocurrencies as an entire — which have supplied folks with larger monetary freedom over the previous decade — however the crypto playing area shouldn’t be allowed to go on unregulated for for much longer for the sake of shopper safety.
