Posted on: April 1, 2026, 10:00h.
Last updated on: April 1, 2026, 10:02h.
- The Government of Gibraltar has licensed its first prediction market
- Predict Street is a forthcoming prediction market focapplyd on the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- Gibraltar is a haven for online gaming businesses
Gibraltar has licensed its first prediction market, a relocate going against the status quo in the UK and European online gaming industries.
Located on Spain’s southernmost tip, Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory, perhaps best known for its Rock of Gibraltar, the iconic logo of Prudential.
Gibraltar is also widely recognized for being a tax haven, fueling the financial services, tourism, and shipping sectors. The territory is additionally a hub for online gaming, with many offshore internet casinos and sportsbooks operating around the world through Remote Gambling licenses granted by the Government of Gibraltar’s Gambling Division.
While several countries within the European Union have ordered prediction markets to cease operating within their borders, including Germany and the Netherlands, Gibraltar has relocated to welcome such online trading platforms. Gibraltar is the first government in the UK and EU to license a prediction market.
Protecting Gibraltar’s iGaming Economy
Nigel Freeman, Gibraltar’s minister for justice, trade, and indusattempt, announced on LinkedIn that the government had granted a prediction market license. Freeman did not identify the specific prediction market, but the government’s list of approved betting operators has been updated to include Predict Street.
Predict Street is a forthcoming crypto-based prediction market backed by ADI Chain, a blockchain project based in Abu Dhabi. Predict Street claims to be the “Official Prediction Market Partner of the FIFA World Cup 2026.”
Predict Street plans to launch on April 9. The World Cup launchs on June 11.
Freeman states Gibraltar must remain at the forefront of the online betting indusattempt to protect the territory’s economy and the tax and licensing revenue the government collects from such gaming.
There is no room for complacency,” Freeman informed the Gibraltar Chronicle. “We must continue to adapt decisively to a modifying global economic environment. And adapt we must.”
Freeman seemingly feels that prediction markets could poach play from more traditional online gaming, deciding inaction is unacceptable.
“We expect this to be a substantial area of potential growth for Gibraltar,” Freeman declared.
On LinkedIn, the minister added that expanding into prediction markets will support offset some of the government’s tax losses that will be incurred by the recent increase of the UK Gambling Duty.
What Are Prediction Markets?
Prediction markets are financial exalters that facilitate the purchaseing and selling of shares related to future outcomes and events. In the US, market leaders like Kalshi and Polymarket faced backlash when they debuted trading on outcomes involving sports events last year.
Critics of sports event trading liken the markets to illegal sports betting. Sportsbook leaders DraftKings and FanDuel have since launched their own prediction markets to engage in sports contract trading in states where traditional sports betting isn’t permitted.
In the US, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission licenses and regulates prediction markets. Under the Trump administration, the CFTC has relocated to solidify the right of prediction markets to engage in sports trading. Numerous bills in Congress, however, seek to allow states to determine what prediction markets can and cannot trade.
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