Poland’s parliament has again failed to overturn a presidential veto on a key crypto regulation bill, prolonging a political standoff over how the country should regulate digital assets.
In Friday’s vote lawmakers fell short of the 263 votes needed to override President Karol Nawrocki’s veto, with 243 MPs voting against the override and 191 in favor. The bill, backed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, was intended to align Poland with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), introduced in 2024 to govern issuance and custody of crypto assets. Poland remains the only EU member state that has not implemented the bloc’s framework.
Nawrocki defended his veto, saying the draft imposed excessive regulation, lacked transparency, and would unduly burden small businesses. Government officials counter that delays in adopting clear rules leave investors exposed. Finance Minister Andrzej Domański warned the absence of regulation risks turning the market into an “El Dorado for fraudsters,” leaving consumers and businesses vulnerable to abuse.
This was the second failed attempt to override the veto after a similar rejection in December. Lawmakers reintroduced the regulation days after that vote, calling the new draft “improved,” though critics said it was largely unchanged. Nawrocki vetoed the bill again in February, saying he would not sign what he called a wrong law even if passed repeatedly.
The dispute has also implicated Zonda, Poland’s largest crypto exchange, which reportedly lobbied against the bill. Tusk accused the platform of links to illicit funding, citing intelligence reports that allegedly tie its origins to Russian criminal networks. Zonda CEO Przemysław Kral denied the allegations, saying attempts to involve him and the company in political disputes are harmful to Poland’s innovation market and that he may take legal action to protect his rights. He also said he does not control a crypto wallet reportedly holding about $330 million, which he says remained with former CEO Sylwester Suszek prior to Suszek’s disappearance in 2022.
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