According to Odaily, Danish Tax Minister Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the betting contracts on the prediction market platform Polymarket, which involve topics such as war and geopolitics. She is considering the possibility of restricting or even shutting down the platform's operations in Denmark.
Reports indicate that Polymarket's current valuation exceeds $8 billion, allowing users to place crypto asset bets on various events. These include not only conventional topics like Federal Reserve decisions, sports events, and elections but also highly sensitive issues such as a ceasefire in Ukraine, whether U.S. President Donald Trump will acquire Greenland, and individuals related to the Epstein files. Data from BT.dk shows that approximately 376 million Danish kroner have been wagered on the Ukraine ceasefire event, and about 33 million Danish kroner on "Trump taking over Greenland."
Halsboe-Jørgensen remarked that the platform "uses the misfortune of others as a betting ground," particularly concerning contracts related to war and conflict, which she finds troubling. She stated, "Betting on death and destruction, and trading in cryptocurrencies, goes against all the values I stand for." She emphasized that if Danish users engage in such betting, which involves national sovereignty and the safety of others, the government has a responsibility to act.
The report notes that Danish regulators are currently assessing whether Polymarket violates national laws and are exploring ways to limit its accessibility in Denmark through regulation or bans. This move has also reignited discussions among European countries about the ethical and regulatory boundaries of Web3 prediction markets.