coinbase.com stopped loading in Taiwan on 14 October 2026. Visitors see a block page that names a criminal ruling of the New Taipei District Court, case 115 Sheng-Kou No. 55, issued under the Public Officials Election and Recall Act. BlockTempo and ABMedia both loaded the site from Taiwan and transcribed the notice.
What is known
- Who asked. The Criminal Investigation Bureau requested the order, and the court authorised Taiwan’s communications regulator and internet registry to bar domestic access, according to Bloomberg, reprinted by the Taipei Times.
- Why. The election law bans running gambling for profit on the outcome of an election or recall. Taiwan holds local elections on 28 November 2026. Neither the court nor the bureau has published the ruling, and no charges have been announced.
- Kalshi too. Bloomberg reports that Kalshi’s site is blocked as well. Kalshi told Bloomberg it does not allow trading in Taiwan, which its member agreement already lists as a restricted jurisdiction.
- What is not blocked. Only the coinbase.com domain is confirmed blocked. Coinbase has not closed Taiwanese accounts, and some users report that the app still works. Coinbase told Bloomberg it is aware of access problems and is investigating.
Why Coinbase was targeted has not been stated. Both Taiwanese outlets point to Coinbase’s prediction markets, powered by Kalshi, which list Taiwanese election contracts, but describe that link as their own reading.
What changes in our data
Coinbase in Taiwan moves from available to limited, at medium confidence: Coinbase still accepts Taiwanese sign-ups, but the main site is blocked inside the country by court order. The record rests on two first-hand tests of the block page; we will raise the confidence once the ruling or an official notice is published, and revisit the status if the block is lifted after the election.
Kalshi was already recorded as restricted in Taiwan under its own terms, so nothing changes there.
Coinbase
Taiwan
Kalshi