Nevis, a federal state part of the Caribbean nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, has launched its own prediction markets licensing regime.
The news was announced by the Nevis Online Gaming Authority (NOGA), which controls the domestic gambling landscape through strict regulations that bar locals from participating in iGaming but allow the issuing of B2B and B2C licences for international operations.
NOGA will now also offer the Nevis Prediction Market License as part of its services, joining a myriad of other regulators worldwide that have introduced their own prediction regulatory frameworks – the most notable being that of Gibraltar, which became the first in the world earlier in 2026.
The Nevis prediction licence will cover both B2C operators and B2B tech and service providers looking to expand into the lucrative market through a dedicated licence.
Prediction markets recognised by NOGA’s licence include binary and multi-outcome options on events across sports, financial and economic indicators, political and electoral events, entertainment, weather and climate, crypto movements and digital assets.
What was also promised by NOGA is that the Nevis Prediction Market License will incorporate the gambling regulator’s standards on corporate due diligence, customer safety and AML compliance to safeguard the integrity of prediction markets and prevent market manipulation.
Nuri Katz, Chief Executive Officer of NOGA, said: “As prediction markets continue to develop, regulatory approaches need to reflect the way these platforms operate and the risks associated with their activities.
“With this dedicated framework, our aim is to provide greater clarity for businesses entering this sector while ensuring that market integrity and participant protection remain central to the licensing process.”
Nevis: prediction markets not gambling
NOGA argues that prediction markets have a distinct characteristic different to traditional online gambling products, which by itself has proved to be a controversial statement wherever the topic of prediction markets springs up.
In the US, where prediction markets are the most prominent thanks to the billions-worth home darlings Kalshi and Polymarket, the products are federally governed by the Commodity and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) – meaning that they in fact are officially recognised as separate from gambling.
However, the way they have established themselves as ‘investment instruments’ is being increasingly challenged by various states such as New York, Arizona and Utah, with the latter just filing criminal charges against Kalshi.
Utah followed Arizona in accusing Kalshi of running an illegal gambling operation in the state.
Things look similarly conflicting over in Europe, where on one hand you have the above-mentioned Gibraltar, while on the other you have 11 other EU member states that are dropping prediction markets like they are a hot potato.
Therefore, small island regions like Nevis, or even self-governing communities like the Tobique First Nation in Canada, are increasingly becoming the safest bet for prediction market licensing due to the limited political pushback domestically.
