Polymarket has self exclusion

[Maslate]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

now, this is where regulators should look at it more closely, because if a prediction market sees the need to introduce responsible gambling tools then they should see them like gambling sites. no more prediction market industry, they should join the gambling industry.

here's the report if you guys are interested.

read the full story

Deposit Limits, Self-Exclusion
As gaming companies have done in the past, Polymarket also introduced deposit limits and self-exclusion guardrails for traders who feel as though they may be getting carried with event contracts.

Polymarket clients considering self-exclusion have several options from which to choose, spanning temporary cooling-off periods up to lifetime halts.

“These tools give users greater control over their activity on Polymarket. Traders can voluntarily exclude themselves from the platform for periods ranging from 30 days to one year to a lifetime,” according to the statement. “U.S. users can also set daily, weekly or monthly deposit limits across all funding methods. Lowering a limit takes effect immediately, while raising or removing one requires a cooling-off period.”

Polymarket, which recently went live in the U.S., accepts deposits in a variety of ways, including Apple Pay, bank transfers, credit and debit cards and cryptocurrency.

[eisen33]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

now, this is where regulators should look at it more closely, because if a prediction market sees the need to introduce responsible gambling tools then they should see them like gambling sites. no more prediction market industry, they should join the gambling industry.

I think this is mostly related to regulators putting pressure on Polymarket. In any case, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s a prediction market or a casino, in both cases, you’re putting your own money on the outcome of an event. Obviously prediction markets can be somewhat different because they cover a much wider range of events related to different areas of life, but the basic idea remains the same: you put your money on an event and risk it in order to win, or you lose your money if you’re wrong.

So I think people who are addicted, have weak willpower, and can’t manage to overcome their addictions may ask for self-exclusion. If Polymarket allows that, then I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it.

[Free Market Capitalist]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

now, this is where regulators should look at it more closely, because if a prediction market sees the need to introduce responsible gambling tools then they should see them like gambling sites. no more prediction market industry, they should join the gambling industry.

I don't know if it's more a consequence of warnings or guidelines from the regulator, as eisen33 points out. But what's clear is that we all know those prediction markets are gambling. A new, different, unique kind of gambling, if you will, but gambling nonetheless. So far, they've managed to circumvent gambling regulations by exploiting legal loopholes, but I think that will gradually change, country by country.

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

Prediction market is just another form of gambling in disguise of investment and player can still get addicted. They present the platform as a trading place where people can invest but the real exchange for trading does not put this kind of limit rules and doesn't also put self exclusions service but gambling site does and in my opinion, the prediction market are also part of gambling and they definitely has seen the way people are playing and some are already getting addicted which could be the reason they have decided to implement this new rules. Some countries have banned prediction market saying they failed to comply with gambling policy since they already see them as no investment platform and just as Market capitalist said, with time other countries will still see the prediction market as gambling platform.

[sunsilk]

They know their own description and it's just the regulators who are changing what they actually are. At least with that additional feature of self exclusion, they have already given the definition just as exact as the casinos.

On the other hand, the casinos have adopted what polymarket has got and that's the prediction market.

Both ends are adopting each others lacking feature and that's to cope with the competition they have.

[Alex077]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well...

In my opinion the situation is a little more complicated than that. Just because Polymarket has introduced deposit limits and self-exclusion doesn’t automatically make it a casino. But I do agree on one thing: the line between prediction markets and gambling is becoming less and less clear.
So I actually think it’s a good thing that Polymarket is introducing these restrictions.
But whether prediction markets should legally be considered gambling is a separate question. In my opinion, responsible gambling tools alone aren’t enough to make that conclusion.

[coinrifft]

It could be good in papers, at least they are very clear now that they have this kind of program. The question is, just like any other platform, do they follow their strict rules on it or are there gamblers that might register again after going into their program.

As we have heard horror stories of gamblers complaining that they were able to play again on a certain casinos even if they are into the self-inclusion. So for now, we don't know that answer yet. And we can only hope that they will be strict in implementing their own rules.

[Oshosondy]

now, this is where regulators should look at it more closely, because if a prediction market sees the need to introduce responsible gambling tools then they should see them like gambling sites. no more prediction market industry, they should join the gambling industry.

Exchanges also have self-exclusion. Some of the exchanges call it cooling-off. But it is not as standard as it is on gambling sites and many among them have expiration, unlike the self-exclusion on gambling sites that you can choose indefinitely.

Many exchanges also have delete account if you think you are addicted to trading, you can delete your account. But you can later create another account on the exchanges.

I do not think self-exclusion should only be in the gambling sites.

[Smartprofit]

As a child, I was fascinated by the concept of indulgences in the Catholic world... I remember the first time I read in a book about how in the Middle Ages, a person could be cleansed of sins by purchasing a special paper (an indulgence) from a monk, guaranteeing the forgiveness of their sins. I also remember the funny story of Robin Hood, who first bought an indulgence from a monk for the sin of violence and robbery, and then robbed the monk himself. So, I've known what an indulgence is since childhood! 💰

In my opinion, the implementation of the self-exclusion system on Polymarket is a typical indulgence purchase. Polymarket is aware of the pressure from regulators and is trying to buy itself off (and protect itself) by implementing the self-exclusion system.

I'm quite skeptical about the effectiveness of this system. I don't believe that betting on Polymarket can be classified as classic gambling.  In my opinion, the Polymarket forecasting platform is a combination of gambling, stock trading, media, and an oracle of truth...

On the one hand, such a feature is probably necessary on the platform. People who bet on Polymarket bet on a wide variety of world events. Therefore, in my opinion, they could very well develop an addiction. However, this isn't a classic gambling addiction, but an addiction to news, an addiction to immersion in the internet and virtual space, an addiction to absorbing and processing vast amounts of information.

I'm not sure that a self-exclusion system can effectively combat this type of addiction. But then again, I think it's simply buying an indulgence. 🙋

[bitLeap]

It was only a matter of time for Polymarket to enter the category of gambling. Regulators must have been monitoring its activity, including the habits of users who posted predictions there and could not control the amount of funds at stake. When they have already included deposit limits and self-exclusion, it means that user activity has been detected that requires a control mechanism.

[Zlantann]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

Self-exclusion is not related only to gambling. People can exclude themselves from addictive activities to help them have control. Polymarket may claim it is not a gambling service provider to avoid regulation or government control, but it is clear that it offers betting options. It's great to see that they are adding these options because people are becoming addicted to prediction markets. Prediction market users keep increasing, which shows more people are getting hooked.

[danherbias07]

I agree!

Well, by doing this, they just admitted that they are a gambling site. Perhaps they saw how many users in their prediction market are already getting hooked and probably spending way too much money. Or the complaints about users getting addicted in their industry are growing.
At first, when they came out, my view was that they are a gambling industry. They just keep on telling people they are not, because maybe some legal matters are different if they do not claim that they are in the gambling industry. I don't know about legalities, but I have a guess that it's probably about taxation.

[Sanitough]

IMO, what is close to prediction market is trading, does it mean exchanges will soon have "self exclusion" as well?

[oll]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion...

Polymarket, which recently went live in the U.S., accepts deposits in a variety of ways, including Apple Pay, bank transfers, credit and debit cards and cryptocurrency.

Apparently they've acknowledged that they're similar in spirit (or rather, in their impact on users) to gambling platforms that can be addictive? And I'm sure this doesn't surprise you, just like it doesn't surprise me. Because bets are placed there, and over such a vast range, absolutely anyone can find a bet they like. And we know that Polymarket has long been blocked in some countries. They recognized the destructive potential of this service early on and therefore blocked it in their territory.
Will this help? No, no one has canceled the VPN.

[SatsPH]

IMO, what is close to prediction market is trading, does it mean exchanges will soon have "self exclusion" as well?

You might have missed something here, Polymarket has some gambling features as well and that's why they have included self-inclusion in their platform. As compare to exchanges which is more of a "trading" platform.

So I think it's a good moved by them. Maybe it's the first step that they might be recognized by authorities or regulators and that there platform is not for pure manipulation and insider trader.

[Maslate]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

Self-exclusion is not related only to gambling. People can exclude themselves from addictive activities to help them have control.

We just stick with the topic, well, there are other self exclusion that you may know but the comparison is just on prediction market and gambling sites, ( at least in this topic)

Polymarket may claim it is not a gambling service provider to avoid regulation or government control, but it is clear that it offers betting options. It's great to see that they are adding these options because people are becoming addicted to prediction markets. Prediction market users keep increasing, which shows more people are getting hooked.

not sure if its their idea, or already the regulators are telling them.
But one thing that is sure, they are still classified as prediction market that has different sets of regulation, I'm just hoping they will be tag as gambling so its not hard for gambling sites to also add prediction market.

[xenomorfo]

It could be good in papers, at least they are very clear now that they have this kind of program. The question is, just like any other platform, do they follow their strict rules on it or are there gamblers that might register again after going into their program.

As we have heard horror stories of gamblers complaining that they were able to play again on a certain casinos even if they are into the self-inclusion. So for now, we don't know that answer yet. And we can only hope that they will be strict in implementing their own rules.

Polymarket is not a market, its a casino and a rigged one.
I advise you against using it, because people often hang out there who have information and therefore, as you well understand, are cheating.
If you enjoy throwing money away like this and never being able to win, go ahead.

[SamReomo]

There's this news about Polymarket already acting more like gambling sites as they have announced Deposit Limits and Self-Exclusion... so I thought they were a prediction market, why are they now introducing the same protections we normally see on gambling platforms? self-exclusion is mainly there to help minimize gambling addiction, yet it is now being implemented here as well.

I think that's a good step by Polymarket and I think prediction markets are in no way different than sports books at casinos where users can place their bets. The only difference is that on prediction markets a user can place bets on various things like weather conditions, elections, 5 min 1 hour, 1 day value of Bitcoin and crypto currencies and etc. I know at predictions markets there's no presence of house and bets happens in peer to peer way.

Other than that prediction markets work in the same way, and the self-exclusion is a good feature to control huge spending and there's nothing wrong with it. I don't know about others but I personally think that prediction markets are in no way different than casinos and nowadays many casinos also offer such predictions markets so they're alike, the only thing that's good about prediction markets is that they don't ask for KYC verification.

[Matteotaylorr]

I think self-exclusion is useful regardless of whether we classify Polymarket as gambling or a prediction market. If people can lose significant amounts of money on an event, having a way to limit their own activity seems reasonable. The more interesting question is probably how effective these restrictions actually are in practice.

[Sanitough]

IMO, what is close to prediction market is trading, does it mean exchanges will soon have "self exclusion" as well?

You might have missed something here, Polymarket has some gambling features as well and that's why they have included self-inclusion in their platform. As compare to exchanges which is more of a "trading" platform.

I was referring to its nature on paper, yes i know they have some gambling features but they do not recognize it that way, they would stick to what they are licensed for, and that is prediction market.

So I think it's a good moved by them. Maybe it's the first step that they might be recognized by authorities or regulators and that there platform is not for pure manipulation and insider trader.

That could be their way to ease the regulatory pressure on them as per that manipulation issue and insider trading you mentioned.