polis

According to Reuters, the Polish parliament has passed a cryptocurrency regulation bill to implement the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), with Poland required to complete the implementation of related rules by July. The legislative backdrop is the alleged large-scale fraud involving the Polish cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto. Polish prosecutors have launched a multi-million dollar fraud investigation, with expected user losses exceeding 350 million zlotys (approximately 95.93 million USD), and thousands of users are currently unable to withdraw their funds.Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk previously stated that "Russian funds" and foreign political influence issues may be involved behind Zondacrypto. The exchange's founder Sylwester Suszek went missing in 2022, and the current head Przemyslaw Kral reportedly has gone to Israel. Polish President Karol Nawrocki had previously vetoed the related MiCA implementation bill twice, believing that the regulatory requirements were too burdensome and could lead to the loss of cryptocurrency businesses.

The Speaker of the Polish Sejm, Włodzimierz Czarzasty, announced that the parliament has officially begun reviewing four competing regulatory bills for crypto assets, following President Karol Nawrocki's veto of related legislation twice. This review involves multiple legislative proposals from the government, the presidential office, the Poland 2050 party, and the Confederation party, with a second reading vote expected to take place on Thursday. The core disagreement centers on the scope of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) regarding account freezing powers and the maximum penalties for violations. The presidential draft sets the maximum fine at approximately 20 million zlotys (about 5.5 million USD), while the Ministry of Finance's version raises it to 25 million zlotys (about 6.9 million USD).Meanwhile, the opposition Law and Justice party (PiS), after withdrawing support for earlier regulatory proposals, submitted a separate bill on Monday advocating for a complete ban on crypto asset-related activities in Poland, further complicating the regulatory discussion. Speaker Czarzasty stated that the PiS ban draft will enter the review process only after the four main regulatory bills are completed and questioned the connection between crypto industry funding and political activities, specifically inquiring about potential political financing issues, including those involving zondacrypto.

According to Politico, Poland's major cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto is facing a serious fraud investigation. Its former CEO went missing in 2022, taking with him the private keys to a cold wallet containing 4,500 bitcoins (currently worth over $340 million). The current CEO has admitted to being unable to access the wallet and has recently been reported to have fled to Israel. Prosecutors estimate potential losses for customers to be around $97 million.On-chain data shows that the bitcoin balance in the platform's hot wallet has plummeted by 99.7% since mid-2024, with users generally reporting difficulties in withdrawing funds. Polish Prime Minister Tusk estimates that up to 30,000 users may be affected.Tusk publicly accused the platform of being funded by Russian-linked money, used to finance opposition lawmakers to obstruct Poland's cryptocurrency regulatory legislation. He bluntly stated that this is a "Polish version of a Ponzi scheme" and criticized the president for vetoing the localization of the EU MiCA framework twice, making Poland a "paradise for scammers."The platform's board stated that they failed to obtain "verifiable information" from the missing CEO and have collectively resigned. The founder has been missing since 2022, and the previously mentioned "suspect kidnapping allegations" case is still under investigation. This incident is expected to prompt Poland and the EU to strengthen regulatory scrutiny of cryptocurrency exchanges.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that a cryptocurrency company linked to "Russian gangs and intelligence agencies" is funding political opponents and influencing domestic cryptocurrency regulatory legislation.During a parliamentary vote on Friday, Tusk pointed out that some Polish politicians obstructing cryptocurrency regulatory legislation are serving the interests of a company named Zondacrypto, which is accused of providing "financial support" to political figures and has ties to Russia. Tusk further claimed that the company sponsored the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) event held in Poland last year, during which former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem publicly supported President Karol Nawrocki's campaign. Tusk bluntly stated that the company's funding sources involve not only "money related to the Russian mafia (Bratva)" but may also be connected to Russian intelligence agencies.Meanwhile, President Nawrocki won the election in June last year, with support from former U.S. President Donald Trump. The president's office responded that it does not oppose cryptocurrency regulation itself but opposes the "flawed regulatory model" proposed by the government. This controversy arises amid the political tug-of-war in Poland over the cryptocurrency regulatory bill. The bill aims to align with the EU's MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation) framework, but the president previously vetoed the related bill and blocked parliament from overturning the veto in December, hindering the regulatory process.

According to Crypto Politan, Polish President Karol Nawrocki has once again vetoed a cryptocurrency bill aimed at incorporating the EU MiCA regulations into domestic law. The bill has been criticized for granting excessive powers to the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF), including the ability to suspend cryptocurrency trading and impose fines of up to 10 million zlotys (approximately 2.8 million USD) for violations.The KNF has warned that if the bill fails to pass before July 1, all domestic crypto platforms will face the risk of operating illegally.Industry representatives are concerned that under the current version, Polish crypto businesses may be forced to relocate to more regulatory-friendly European regions such as the Baltic states. Currently, Prime Minister Tusk's government lacks the three-fifths majority needed in parliament to overturn the presidential veto.

According to a report by Investing.com, UK fintech company GSTechnologies Ltd (London Stock Exchange: GST) has announced the acquisition of Polish virtual asset service provider Finferno Spółka Z Ograniczoną Odpowiedzialnością, with the transaction amount undisclosed.The acquisition is funded by GST's existing cash resources and aims to expand the company's digital asset business in Poland and Central Europe. Through this transaction, GST will be able to launch new digital asset exchanges and wealth management services in Poland, initially operating in a pilot format. GST Chairman Tone Goh stated in a press release that this acquisition aligns with the company's plan to internationalize its digital asset business GS Fintech in specific markets with strong potential.

According to CoinDesk, the Polish Sejm has once again passed the "Cryptocurrency Market Bill," which was previously vetoed by President Karol Nawrocki, and sent it to the Senate for further review.The bill was approved on Thursday with 241 votes from lawmakers, and its content is identical to the version that was previously vetoed. The bill aims to align Polish law with the EU's "Regulation on Markets in Crypto-Assets" (MiCA), but critics argue that it exceeds EU standards and grants the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) overly broad enforcement powers, including website blocking and fines in the millions of zlotys.Nawrocki's reasons for vetoing the bill included vague legal provisions, excessive regulation, and high compliance costs, warning that the relevant clauses could harm small businesses and allow for "one-click" domain shutdowns. Despite facing opposition, Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government has made no modifications to resubmit the bill. After the Senate review, the bill may face another presidential veto.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki has vetoed the proposal of the Crypto-Asset Market Act, which aimed to introduce strict regulations for the country's crypto industry. The president's office confirmed in a statement on Monday that he would not sign the bill. President Karol Nawrocki rejected the bill on the grounds that it "truly threatens the freedom, property, and national stability of the Polish people," and pointed out that the bill's length (over 100 pages) far exceeds the requirements set by the EU's MiCA.His main objection lies in a provision that grants authorities the power to block crypto-related websites. Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domański stated on the X platform that the president's choice would expose consumers to risks, claiming that Karol Nawrocki "chose chaos." Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also believes that the bill is necessary to curb fraud. Industry insiders welcomed the veto, arguing that consumer protection should not come at the cost of excessive control.

According to Cointelegraph, Polish President Karol Nawrocki vetoed the heavily regulated "Cryptocurrency Market Act," which has drawn praise from the cryptocurrency community and strong criticism from the government.The presidential office stated that the provisions of the bill "truly threaten the freedom, property, and national stability of the Polish people." The main reasons for the veto include: the risk of abuse from provisions that allow authorities to easily block cryptocurrency websites; the bill's complexity leading to overregulation; and excessively high regulatory costs that could hinder the development of startups, benefiting foreign companies and banks. The president warned that excessive regulation would drive businesses to operate in the Czech Republic, Lithuania, or Malta instead of paying taxes in Poland.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi Data, on August 24, Professor Novak from the Warsaw School of Economics and Business stated that he believes the United States will be the biggest loser from the tariff increases.Novak pointed out that in the current trade system, countries will ultimately adjust the global trade pattern in various ways, which will put the United States in a very unfavorable position. Other countries will not maintain this high-tariff trade system with the United States, which will inevitably lead to a restructuring of the global trade pattern.He recalled during Trump's first presidential term that tariff increases would not bring about job growth, and therefore he believes that American consumers will bear the cost of the tariffs, making the United States a loser as a result.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official announcement, OKX has officially launched a fully compliant centralized cryptocurrency trading platform in Germany and Poland. Users in Germany or Poland can trade over 270 cryptocurrencies, including more than 60 cryptocurrency pairs with the euro.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, the Polish presidential election has entered the final sprint phase. Nationalist candidate Karol Nawrocki recently released a video on social media promising that if elected, he would support the development of the cryptocurrency industry and oppose regulatory policies that restrict investment freedom. This candidate, supported by the Law and Justice Party, admitted that he does not hold digital currencies but emphasized that "Poland should be a birthplace of innovation rather than regulation."The latest polls show that Nawrocki and Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski have similar support rates. Analysts believe that his stance on cryptocurrency aims to attract supporters of far-right candidate Slawomir Mentzen, who is known for holding Bitcoin and garnered 14.8% of the votes in the first round. Notably, Trzaskowski also publicly opposed regulating the Polish cryptocurrency market in February.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, recently, a reporter interviewed Polish economist Orłowski, who pointed out that the excessive imposition of tariffs by the United States has brought negative impacts not only to itself but also to the global economy. Professor Orłowski of the University of Vistula: There is no doubt that the economic growth rates of various countries will slow down with the increase of tariffs, including the countries that initiate the tariff war. We see that the International Monetary Fund has already downgraded its forecast for global economic growth in 2025 for the United States and other countries. Because economists are very clear that if you start a tariff war, the first to be punished is your own consumers, as they have to pay higher prices. Secondly, other countries usually retaliate with high tariffs, and in the end, you gain nothing. Everyone is punished, and the speed of economic growth slows down.

ChainCatcher news, according to CryptoNews, the National Bank of Poland (NBP) has firmly denied any possibility of incorporating Bitcoin into its national reserves, citing security and stability.Adam Glapiński, the President of the National Bank of Poland and Chairman of the Monetary Policy Council, announced this news at a press conference and reiterated that the central bank's top priority is to maintain the absolute safety of its reserve assets. Glapiński stated, "Under no circumstances will we consider Bitcoin, as reserves must be absolutely secure."Poland's reserves remain primarily composed of traditional assets such as gold, US dollars, and euros, with a strategic focus on financial stability.

ChainCatcher news, Mechanism Capital co-founder Andrew Kang posted on social media that the investment logic of the $TRUMP token is very simple: meme coin trading mainly relies on attention, and Trump is the world's largest attention monopolist, a situation that will not change after the inauguration.Previously, Andrew Kang had stated that he believes the market capitalization of the $TRUMP token is expected to reach a circulating market cap of $100 billion and surpass Doge, as investing in the Trump brand is more easily accepted compared to investing in random dog coins.

According to ChainCatcher, TechCrunch reported that Indonesia's antitrust agency KPPU has fined Google 20.25 trillion Indonesian rupiah (approximately 12.6 million USD) for monopolistic practices related to its Google Play Store payment system. KPPU has ordered Google to stop mandating the use of the Google Play Billing (GPB) system and to allow all developers to participate in the User Choice Billing (UCB) program, while also providing at least a 5% service fee discount within one year of the ruling taking effect.The investigation began in 2022 and found that Google forced Indonesian developers to use the GPB system and charged fees of up to 30%, while prohibiting other payment options, resulting in reduced users, decreased transaction volume, and impaired revenue. Google plans to appeal this ruling and stated that its current practices support healthy competition in Indonesia's app ecosystem.Google has previously faced fines and regulatory investigations for similar anti-competitive behavior in India, South Korea, the European Union, and other regions, and Japan's antitrust agency may become the next country to rule that it has violated antitrust laws.

ChainCatcher news, Layer 1 public chain Saga announced a strategic partnership with Virtuals, Eliza Labs, and Wayfinder to jointly develop the cross-chain AI agent protocol Metropolis. This protocol will allow AI agents to autonomously deploy and manage independent Layer 1 blockchain networks (Chainlets) through the Saga infrastructure. Saga plans to launch the Liquidity Integration Layer (LIL) in the first quarter of 2025 to achieve cross-chain liquidity and interoperability.The protocol integrates Wayfinder's multi-chain AI agent framework, Virtuals' dynamic virtual agents, and Eliza Labs' ElizaOS system. Core features of Metropolis include ElizaOS integration, autonomous chain deployment capabilities, and a dynamic ecosystem supported by the Virtuals Butler Agent. This collaboration marks an important milestone in the deep integration of blockchain and AI technologies, providing stronger infrastructure support for decentralized applications.

ChainCatcher news, Layer 1 public chain Saga announced a strategic partnership with Virtuals, Eliza Labs, and Wayfinder to jointly develop the cross-chain AI agent protocol Metropolis. This protocol will allow AI agents to autonomously deploy and manage independent Layer 1 blockchain networks (Chainlets) through the Saga infrastructure. Saga plans to launch the Liquidity Integration Layer (LIL) in the first quarter of 2025 to achieve cross-chain liquidity and interoperability.The protocol integrates Wayfinder's multi-chain AI agent framework, Virtuals' dynamic virtual agents, and Eliza Labs' ElizaOS system. Core features of Metropolis include ElizaOS integration, autonomous chain deployment capabilities, and a dynamic ecosystem supported by the Virtuals Butler Agent. This collaboration marks an important milestone in the deep integration of blockchain and AI technologies, providing stronger infrastructure support for decentralized applications.