TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Access to a U.S. website taking bets on Taiwan’s presidential election has been blocked in Taiwan though suspects continue to be arrested for using it.
A representative of Taiwan’s domain name registrar told Taiwan News that access to the website was blocked on Dec. 22, in cooperation with the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB). The CIB told Taiwan News the website has only been blocked locally, and that users outside of the country will still be able to access it.
Meanwhile, Miaoli County police said 11 people were arrested on Friday for betting on the election through the website. Nearly US$8,000 (about NT$247,000) worth of cryptocurrency was confiscated during the arrest, per CNA.
The arrests follow a further 17 made in mid-December for betting on the presidential race through the website. Those found guilty of profiting from bets made on an election can be sentenced to five years in prison, with a fine of up to NT$500,000.
The bets were made on the decentralized prediction marketplace Polymarket, through which nearly US$700,000 has been wagered on the election so far. Users of the site can buy either “yes” or “no” bets on whether or not one of the three candidates will win.
Marketed as “shares,” users place bets that cost a fraction of a U.S. dollar, at a price determined by the market. Once the betting period closes, shares of correct responses are valued at US$1, and incorrect answers are worthless.
At the time of publishing, betting that Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Lai Ching-te (賴清德) will win the election cost the most, at US$0.77. A bet for Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) to win cost US$0.17, while a bet for Kuomintang (KMT) candidate Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) to win cost US$0.14, representing the highest payout.
Bets for Lai to win have dropped in price by US$0.01 since mid-December, while Ko and Hou’s both dropped by US$0.02.
