Poland Upholds Crypto Bill Veto as Zondacrypto Scandal Deepens

Polish lawmakers failed on Friday to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of legislation aimed at regulating the country's crypto market, falling short of the three-fifths majority required in the Sejm. The lower house voted 241-198, with three abstentions, missing the 266-vote threshold by 25 ballots. This marked the third veto of the bill, with Nawrocki arguing that the proposed framework would overregulate the industry and grant authorities excessive powers, including the ability to block websites.

The vetoed legislation was designed to align Poland with the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) by placing crypto oversight under the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF). In a statement following the vote, KNF confirmed that Poland still lacks a designated national supervisor for the cryptoasset market, even though MiCA already applies across all EU member states. Prime Minister Donald Tusk has used the legislative impasse to press for tighter crypto oversight, citing an expanding criminal investigation into the defunct Polish exchange Zondacrypto and the bankruptcy of its Estonian operator.

Ahead of the vote, Tusk disclosed excerpts from witness testimony in the Zondacrypto probe, alleging a 2 million Polish zloty (approximately $550,000) payment arrangement involving a foundation linked to former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro. In a separate account, the witness claimed an unnamed individual had promised to secure a presidential pardon in the event of a conviction. Polish prosecutors are currently investigating suspected fraud and money laundering tied to Zondacrypto, and in July merged the case with a probe into the 2022 disappearance of Sylwester Suszek, founder of BitBay, which was later rebranded as Zondacrypto. Prosecutors estimated in April that losses linked to the exchange were substantial, though the full extent remains under investigation.