Kalshi and Polymarket defy Indian ban, ministry warning to keep onboarding users
Kalshi and Polymarket are continuing to onboard and serve users in India despite a national federal ban on online betting platforms and a direct April 25 warning from India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, according to multiple reports dated May 18. The platforms are specifically targeting the Indian Premier League sports betting market, which sees over $4.8 billion in combined weekly volume. India's technology ministry has also warned VPN providers that Kalshi and Polymarket are being used to circumvent local access blocks. Kalshi legal counsel Valeria Vouterakou said the company has been in communication with the Indian government and has not been told to shut down. The defiance places both CFTC-regulated and crypto-native platforms at direct odds with Indian enforcement.
Kalshi and Polymarket must now manage simultaneous regulatory conflicts across three continents — India's VPN crackdown, Schumer's Senate ban, and Minnesota's proposed state block — without a unified compliance playbook. Any enforcement action in India could trigger geofencing costs and user-base losses that directly undercut the $22 billion valuation Kalshi just secured from Coatue.
Adds India to the running list of jurisdictions where Kalshi and Polymarket are operating against explicit regulatory opposition, alongside simultaneous federal pressure in the U.S. from Schumer's Senate ban push, Minnesota state legislation, and CFTC information demands.