The troubles for Polish cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto continue to escalate. Following reports of customer withdrawals being frozen or delayed, the company has drawn criticism from Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who alleged in parliament that Zondacrypto had sponsored politicians opposed to cryptocurrency market regulation. Tusk claimed that these politicians' actions were influenced by the exchange, which has ties to Russia and had previously provided them with financial support. This statement came before a vote to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of the law, as reported by AP.
The exchange's CEO, Przemysław Kral, attempted to address allegations that the company was using investors' funds to boost its dwindling reserves by revealing the existence of a bitcoin wallet holding approximately 4,500 BTC, valued at around $330 million. However, Kral admitted that the company cannot access the funds because the previous owner, former CEO Sylwester Suszek, did not provide the private key before disappearing in 2021. Kral stated that he disclosed the wallet address to dispel accusations of misusing client funds.
The company has faced issues with delayed customer withdrawals since late March, according to local news reports. Kral denied any misuse of client funds and asserted that the exchange remains profitable. He claimed that the situation is part of a broader campaign against the company, citing supposed 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 dropped by about 99% since mid-2024.
The controversy surrounding Zondacrypto has been ongoing, with Polish investigative reporting in 2024 identifying a shareholder with a criminal record. In 2019, Poland's Financial Supervision Authority placed BitBay, the company's previous name, on its public warning list for unauthorized financial activities. An investigation into BB Trade Estonia, Zonda's owner, was launched in January 2025 by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection for violating consumer interests.
Kral has attributed reports of declining reserves to a 'fundamental analytical error' and stated that the company is stable, solvent, and secure. He explained that withdrawal delays were caused by an unusually high volume of requests and the implementation of new security systems, which required manual verification.
On-chain data shows that the presented wallet has seen minimal recent activity, with no outgoing transactions and only 32 receiving transactions. The veto vote ultimately did not overturn the block, with 191 MPs voting in favor and 243 against, 20 mandates short of the required number.