Bitbank warns Japanese users of account suspensions for Polymarket-linked transfers
Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank warned users on June 15, 2026 that transactions linked to Polymarket could trigger account suspension, citing Japan's gambling laws. The notice is one of the first instances of a regulated exchange explicitly screening for prediction-market-related flows. Bitbank did not detail how it would identify Polymarket-linked transfers or specify whether the policy applies to deposits, withdrawals, or both. The warning targets Japanese traders using the CFTC-regulated platform for betting-related transactions and reflects growing caution among licensed exchanges about servicing prediction-market activity. Affected users could lose access to all account functions.
Polymarket's first explicit banking-channel block by a licensed national exchange forces the platform to either build Japan-specific compliance rails or write off a top-five crypto market. Any additional exchange restrictions would replicate the geofence problem Polymarket already faces in South Korea, Brazil, and Spain alongside Minnesota's felony ban and New Mexico's tribal litigation.
Joins the CFTC's preemption offensive against state-level prediction-market crackdowns, with parallel federal cases now active in Minnesota, Rhode Island, and New Mexico alongside Japan's first exchange-led enforcement.