Poland's Prime Minister Accuses Zondacrypto of Influencing Legislation

The troubles for Polish cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto continue to escalate. Following reports of frozen or delayed customer withdrawals, the company has drawn criticism from Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who alleged that Zondacrypto sponsored politicians who opposed cryptocurrency market regulation. Tusk claimed that these politicians were acting in the best interests of the exchange, which has ties to Russia and had previously provided them with financial support. This statement was made before a vote to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of the law. The exchange's CEO, Przemysław Kral, attempted to address allegations that the company was using investors' funds to supplement its dwindling reserves by revealing the existence of a bitcoin wallet containing approximately 4,500 BTC, valued at around $330 million. However, Kral stated that the company is unable to access the funds due to the previous owner's failure to provide the private key, and the former CEO, Sylwester Suszek, has been missing since 2021. Kral denied any misuse of client funds and claimed that the exchange remains profitable. He attributed the situation to a broader campaign against the company, citing political pressure, regulatory interference, and coordinated media coverage that led to a surge in withdrawal requests. An analysis by blockchain intelligence firm Recoveris found that bitcoin balances in hot wallets tied to Zonda have decreased by about 99% since mid-2024. The controversy surrounding Zondacrypto is long-standing, with the company facing investigations and warnings from regulatory bodies in the past. In 2019, Poland's Financial Supervision Authority placed BitBay, the company's former name, on its public warning list for unauthorized financial activities. More recently, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection started an investigation into BB Trade Estonia, Zonda's owner, for violating consumer interests. Kral has defended the company, stating that reports of declining reserves are the result of a 'fundamental analytical error' and that the platform is 'stable, solvent, and secure.' The company has faced issues with withdrawal delays, which Kral attributed to an unusually high volume of requests and the implementation of new security measures.