Brazil Bans 27 Prediction Platforms: Kalshi, Polymarket, Robinhood

Brazil has blocked 27 prediction market platforms, including Kalshi, Polymarket, PredictIt, and Robinhood. Resolution 5.298 of the National Monetary Council classifies sports, politics, and entertainment contracts as gambling and places them outside the country's current legal framework.

Anatel Will Enforce Access Blocks Under Ministry of Finance Order

Brazil's Ministry of Finance issued the ruling on Friday and tasked the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) with technical enforcement. The agency will cut access to all 27 platforms at the internet provider level across the country.

Finance Ministry executive secretary Dario Durigan addressed reporters at the Palacio do Planalto press conference. He said the sector spent a period of anarchy from 2018 to 2022 without rules or oversight. That regulatory gap pushed the CMN toward a hard stop rather than gradual regulation.

The formal justification centers on household debt risk. "At a time when we are working to reduce debt levels among families, small businesses, and students, we cannot allow new forms of harmful indebtedness," Durigan said. The move is formalized in Resolution 5.298 of the National Monetary Council (CMN), adopted that same day.

Financial Indicator Contracts Survive; Sports and Politics Are Out

The resolution takes effect in early May 2026. The rules draw a clear line by contract type.

Banned contracts include those tied to sports events, politics, entertainment, and social processes. Brazilian regulators treat them as gambling products rather than financial instruments. That legal stance mirrors the position of several US states pressing against prediction platforms through local courts.

Contracts based on financial indicators remain permitted: inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, and commodity prices. Those contracts will fall under financial regulator oversight. The allowed segment is narrow. Most platforms built their audience on elections, sports, and entertainment. That product is now illegal in Brazil.

Kalshi, Polymarket and 25 Other Services on the List

The list includes a mix of major international brands and Brazil-only services. The international segment covers the most recognized platforms.

• Kalshi, federally licensed by the CFTC in the United States
• Polymarket, a decentralized DEX-based platform
• PredictIt and Robinhood through its forecasting feature
• Fanatics Markets, ProphetX, Hedgehog Markets, Novig, Polyswipe, PRED Exchange, and Stride

Brazilian services in the block include Palpita, Cravei, Previsao, and MercadoPred. The full list was published by state news outlet Agencia Brasil.

Kalshi's inclusion drew notice. The company spent years navigating US regulatory approval and secured a federal CFTC license. Brazil's CMN found that argument irrelevant.

Brazil Joins a Widening Global Crackdown

France, Belgium, and the Netherlands had already moved before Brazil. Those countries either blocked platforms without authorization or penalized them. Across jurisdictions, the core argument is the same. Prediction markets are treated not as financial instruments but as gambling products that need matching oversight.

The US picture is more fragmented. The federal CFTC and most courts have backed platform legality. But individual states are pressing through local law. New York had already challenged the legal status of prediction markets in court. On the same Friday that Brazil announced its ban, Wisconsin filed suit against Kalshi, Polymarket, and several others over sports event contracts.

None of the affected platforms commented on the CMN resolution at time of publication. The resolution takes effect in May, leaving a few weeks for technical adjustment or legal challenge.