South Korea Targets 26 Polymarket Users in $12.7M Betting Case

South Korean police have booked 26 Polymarket users over alleged illegal gambling involving 17.6 billion won, roughly $12.7 million, with 18 cases referred to prosecutors by Sept. 15. Summary 26 South Korean Polymarket users were booked, with 18 already referred to prosecutors over gambling. 17.6 billion won in cumulative wagers was linked to suspects identified through public blockchain records. 5.7 billion won was the highest individual betting amount reported among the 26 investigated users. South Korea blocked Polymarket access on August 18 after regulators classified its structure as gambling. Police say Polymarket contracts meet gambling elements when users stake assets on uncertain outcomes online. The Asia Business Daily reported on Sept. 17, citing National Police Agency materials provided to lawmaker Yoon Kun-young’s office, that the Gangwon Provincial Police Agency Cyber Investigation Unit recorded a highest individual betting amount of approximately 5.7 billion won. The report was updated at 10:08 a.m. KST. Digital Asset later reported from the same police material that investigators began preliminary inquiries in March and formally booked users from May. Police said a conventional list of domestic users was not available from the platform because Polymarket uses a non-custodial peer-to-peer structure, so investigators traced public blockchain transactions with open-source intelligence tools. You might also like: Stock and crypto interest jumps 96% in South Korea Polymarket users were traced through blockchain records Police said public blockchain transaction data allowed investigators to identify individual users even though Polymarket does not maintain a real-name customer list in the form associated with centralized platforms. The published police material did not disclose the wallet addresses linked to the 26 suspects, preventing independent address-by-address checks of the reported wager totals. As crypto.news reported in June, the Gangwon police inquiry had already become the first known South Korean investigation focused on domestic Polymarket users. Authorities at the time were examining whether event-contract activity could fall within the country’s gambling laws. The newest police figures show that 18 of the 26 booked users had been referred to prosecutors by Sept. 15. The materials reviewed do not report indictments, trial dates or court judgments involving those cases. Police say Polymarket trades can meet gambling rules Investigators are relying on Article 246 of South Korea’s Criminal Act. The provision states that gambling can carry a fine of up to 10 million won, while habitual gambling can result in imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to 20 million won. The current text took effect on Sept. 13, 2026. Police have cited a 2008 Supreme Court ruling addressing the role of chance in gambling. The court held that gambling can exist when property is wagered on an outcome the parties cannot certainly predict or freely control, even when a participant’s ability affects the result.