Poland in crypto-political turmoil amid concerns over solvency of major exchange

Reports that a leading crypto exchange in Poland and the region may be facing insolvency have reignited a political dispute in Warsaw over who is to blame for the deficit of oversight in the digital-asset space.

The Polish cryptocurrency market, arguably Eastern Europe’s largest, is yet to be regulated in accordance with the European Union’s latest rules. Government attempts to do that so far were halted by the president.

Poland-rooted European crypto exchange reportedly losing liquidity

Zondarcrypto, one of the oldest and largest coin trading platforms in Central and Eastern Europe, has lost liquidity, local and regional media reported.

Some users have been complaining that they are unable to withdraw funds from the exchange, the Brussels Signal portal wrote on Wednesday. Others experienced delays.

According to an analysis conducted by the market intelligence firm Recoveris, quoted earlier this week by the websites Wirtualna Polska and Money.pl, Zondarcrypto has lost over 99% of its reserves.

Within the study commissioned by Wirtualna Polska, the crypto recovery company estimated that its Bitcoin assets had fallen from over 55 BTC in August 2024 to just 0.18 BTC in March 2026.

Zonda CEO Przemysław Kral has rejected these claims, attributing withdrawal difficulties to “temporary technical issues” and manual operations slowing down payments.

In a post on X, the crypto executive accused the two Polish news outlets of creating panic based on false data and insisted the company is “stable, solvent, and safe.”

Kral said the analysts made a mistake by taking into account only the hot wallets of the exchange while most of its assets were stored in cold wallets, as part of its liquidity management strategy. He was positive the company had more than enough to cover all its obligations, stating:

“On April 1, the balance of our reserve in Bitcoin alone stood at 4,500 BTC.”

Zondacrypto case sparks another political clash in Poland

Zondacrypto was founded in Poland but moved its headquarters to Estonia in 2019 and currently operates under a license issued by the Baltic country.

Poland, however, is yet to adopt legislation transposing the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets regulation into national law and start issuing its own licenses.

The legislative proposal put forward by the center-left government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk was vetoed twice by President Karol Nawrocki, who is allied with the right-wing opposition.

The alleged liquidity issue at Zondacrypto triggered another political clash between the two sides over who is responsible for the absence of adequate regulatory oversight in the industry.

Finance Minister Andrzej Domański remarked that the veto imposed by the head of state has left Poland’s financial watchdog, KNF, without regulatory powers over firms operating under foreign licenses.

Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński chimed in, warning that thousands of investors could lose their savings, blaming President Nawrocki and the opposition for blocking crypto regulations.

Ahead of a cabinet meeting, Tusk insisted the government-drafted bill does not bring overregulation, like the opposition claims, but protection for people’s wallets.

Quoted by the Polish radio and the PAP news agency, the prime minister urged:

“The time for a parliamentary vote to override the presidential veto is approaching fast.”

Citing Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW), he also revealed that Przemysław Kral made donations to foundations linked to politicians from the Law and Justice (PiS) party and the far-right Confederation alliance, while Zondacrypto sponsored a conservative political conference.

Meanwhile, the National Prosecutor’s Office of Poland launched an investigation into the alleged irregularities at the cryptocurrency exchange.

Warsaw must adopt the MiCA-inspired crypto legislation by July 1. Government spokesman Adam Szłapka said a new parliamentary vote may take place in mid-April.

The pro-crypto leader of Confederation, Sławomir Mentzen, argued that an earlier adoption of the controversial law would have made no difference as the Estonia-registered Zonda would have been exempted from the Polish rules until the summer under the provisions proposed by the government.

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