ASIC chair says prediction markets for retail clients are not in public interest
ASIC Chair Sarah Court warned October 30, 2026, that prediction markets for retail clients may not serve the public interest. Australia's corporate regulator compared event contracts to binary options, a product category banned for retail investors there. ASIC indicated it does not intend to permit such markets for everyday investors. The statement signals headwinds for platforms seeking to offer retail-facing event contracts in Australia. No specific enforcement actions or individual platforms were named.
An Australian retail ban would close a developed-market jurisdiction. The platform now faces a 55% drop in crypto revenue alongside a regulator that frames event contracts as gambling-like products unfit for retail hands. ASIC's binary-options parallel is deliberate: that category carries existing prohibition machinery Australia can extend rather than invent.
For operators counting on geographic diversification beyond U.S. state fights, this removes one escape hatch. The stance may also influence regulators in comparable Commonwealth markets watching how Australia classifies these products. Platforms must now decide whether to pivot toward institutional-only offerings in Australia or abandon the market ahead of any formal rulemaking.