The woes of 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 alleged that Zondacrypto sponsored politicians who opposed crypto market regulation. Tusk made these comments before a vote to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of the law, stating that the exchange has ties to Russia and had previously provided financial support to lawmakers.
In response to allegations that the company was misusing investor funds, Zondacrypto CEO Przemysław Kral revealed that the exchange owns a bitcoin wallet holding approximately 4,500 BTC, valued at around $330 million. However, the company cannot access these funds as the previous owner, former CEO Sylwester Suszek, did not hand over the private key and has been missing since 2021. Kral denied any misuse of client funds, stating that the exchange remains profitable and that the inaccessible wallet was disclosed to dispel allegations of misappropriation. The situation has sparked a broader campaign against the company, with Kral citing political pressure, regulatory interference, and coordinated media coverage contributing 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 the company facing investigations and warnings from regulatory authorities in the past. In 2019, Poland's Financial Supervision Authority placed BitBay, Zondacrypto'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 maintained that reports of declining reserves stemmed from a 'fundamental analytical error' and that the platform is 'stable, solvent, and secure.' The wallet presented as proof of reserves has seen little 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 of the veto and 243 against it, 20 mandates too few to overturn the block.