The firm also revealed a 4,500 BTC wallet that remains inaccessible due to lost private keys associated with a former CEO who has vanished.

Got the wallet, not the key. (Aleksandrs Karevs/Unsplash)

Key Takeaways:

• Zondacrypto, a Polish cryptocurrency platform, faces mounting pressure due to halted withdrawals and claims of political meddling.
• Prime Minister Donald Tusk alleged the firm financially supported legislators who resisted crypto regulations.
• CEO Przemysław Kral maintains the exchange is financially stable, despite acknowledging an inaccessible 4,500 BTC wallet and reports of drained hot wallets.

Poland-based crypto exchange Zondacrypto is navigating a deepening crisis.

Following initial backlash over frozen customer withdrawals, the exchange faced new accusations from Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Friday. During a parliamentary session, Tusk claimed the company had provided financial backing to politicians who blocked cryptocurrency market regulations.

According to an AP report, Tusk stated that certain lawmakers’ efforts to block legislation demonstrated they were acting on Zondacrypto’s behalf. He noted the exchange’s connections to Russia and its history of supporting these legislators, all occurring just before a vote to override President Karol Nawrocki’s veto of the law.

These remarks followed a day where Zondacrypto CEO Przemysław Kral addressed rumors on X regarding the alleged misappropriation of investor funds to replenish declining reserves.

In a video and statement posted on the platform, Kral asserted that the exchange holds adequate reserves, including a bitcoin wallet containing approximately 4,500 BTC, valued at roughly $330 million. However, he disclosed that these funds are currently inaccessible because the former owner failed to transfer the private key and has since gone missing.

Withdrawal Delays

Kral explained that he shared the wallet address to dispel «unfounded accusations of alleged misappropriation of funds.» He noted that former CEO Sylwester Suszek failed to hand over the key in 2021 when ownership of the exchange, formerly known as BitBay, was transferred and Kral assumed control. Suszek has been absent for four years.

Local news reports indicate that Zondacrypto has dealt with frozen or delayed customer withdrawals since late March. Kral denied any misuse of client assets and affirmed the exchange’s profitability. He stated that making the inaccessible wallet public was intended to demonstrate the company’s reserve capacity.

According to an AI translation of his Polish video, Kral described the situation as part of a wider campaign against the company. He cited alleged political pressure, regulatory interference, and coordinated media coverage as factors contributing to the spike in withdrawal requests.

Analysis by blockchain intelligence firm Recoveris, cited by local news outlets, revealed that bitcoin balances in Zondacrypto’s hot wallets have plummeted by approximately 99% since mid-2024. Earlier, Kral had threatened legal action against Polish media covering the controversy.

This incident rekindles longstanding controversies surrounding the firm.

Polish investigative reporting, spearheaded by broadcaster TVN, identified shareholder Marek K., who held a 35% stake, in 2024 as a criminal sentenced to eight years in prison for complicity in a 1995 gangland murder and fined 45 million zlotys ($12.5 million) for VAT fraud.

In 2019, Poland’s Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) placed BitBay on its public warning list for unauthorized financial act