The troubles facing Polish cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto continue to escalate. Following reports of frozen or delayed customer withdrawals, the company has drawn the ire of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who claimed that Zondacrypto sponsored politicians who opposed crypto market regulation, thereby blocking the legislation. Tusk's comments came before a parliamentary vote to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of the law.
The exchange has ties to Russia and had previously provided financial support to lawmakers. In response to allegations that the company was using investors' funds to boost its declining reserves, Zondacrypto's CEO Przemysław Kral released a statement and video stating that the exchange has sufficient reserves and owns a bitcoin wallet holding approximately 4,500 BTC, valued at around $330 million.
However, the company cannot access the funds as the previous owner, former CEO Sylwester Suszek, did not hand over the private key and has been missing since 2021. Kral attributed the situation to a broader campaign against the company, citing political pressure, regulatory interference, and coordinated media coverage.
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 the company facing investigations and warnings from regulatory authorities in the past. In 2024, an investigative report identified a shareholder with a criminal record, and in 2019, the Financial Supervision Authority placed BitBay, Zondacrypto's predecessor, on its public warning list for unauthorized financial activities. The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection has also been investigating BB Trade Estonia, Zonda's owner, for violating consumer interests.
Kral has maintained that the company is stable, solvent, and secure, and that the reports of declining reserves are due to a 'fundamental analytical error' focusing solely on hot wallets.