Poland Sejm Fails to Override Crypto Bill Veto Amid Zondacrypto Scandal

Polish lawmakers failed on Friday to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of legislation designed to strengthen oversight of the country's cryptocurrency market. The Sejm, Poland's lower house of parliament, voted 241-198 in favor of overriding the veto, with three abstentions, falling 25 votes short of the required three-fifths majority of 266 votes. This marks the third time the president has vetoed the bill, arguing that the proposed rules would overregulate the industry and grant authorities excessive powers, including the ability to block websites.

The vetoed legislation aimed to establish Poland's national framework for implementing the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), placing crypto market oversight under the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF). KNF confirmed Friday that Poland still lacks a designated authority for supervising the cryptoasset market, even though MiCA already applies across the EU. The legislative deadlock comes as the scandal surrounding defunct exchange Zondacrypto intensifies, with its Estonian operator now declared bankrupt.

Ahead of the vote, Prime Minister Donald Tusk disclosed excerpts from witness testimony in the expanding Zondacrypto investigation, alleging a 2 million Polish zloty ($550,000) payment arrangement involving a foundation linked to former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro. A separate testimony cited claims that an unnamed individual promised to secure a presidential pardon for the witness if convicted. Polish prosecutors are investigating suspected fraud and money laundering connected to the exchange, and in July merged the case with a probe into the 2022 disappearance of Sylwester Suszek, founder of BitBay, which was later renamed Zondacrypto.