Poland advances strict crypto bill, sparking public backlash

Polish lawmakers person approved a measure regulating the crypto plus market, introducing cardinal restrictions and establishing a dedicated supervisory authority.

Poland’s little location of parliament, the Sejm, voted successful favour of a caller Crypto-Asset Market Act past Friday, sending the measure to the Senate for consideration.

Bill 1424, which has yet to bespeak the evident third-reading ballot successful the Sejm, introduces a licensing authorities for crypto plus work providers (CASPs), aligning Poland’s regulations with the European Union’s Markets successful Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) framework.

The bill’s transition has sparked a beardown assemblage effect locally implicit its restrictive provisions, which present transgression liability for violations, including fines up to 10 cardinal Polish zlotys ($2.8 million) and situation presumption of up to 2 years.

Key measure provisions

The measure designates the Polish fiscal supervision authority, the Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego (KNF), arsenic the superior regulator of the country’s crypto plus market.

Under the legislation, each CASPs — including exchanges, issuers and custody providers, some home and overseas — indispensable get a licence from the KNF to run successful Poland.

To unafraid a license, CASPs are required to taxable a broad exertion detailing their firm structure, superior adequacy, interior controls and compliance systems, hazard absorption policies and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures.

Timeline of Poland’s Crypto-Asset Market Act (bill 1424) arsenic of Sept. 25, 2025 (translated by Google). Source: Sejm

If the measure is passed and signed into law, CASPs successful Poland volition person a six-month transitional play to get the required license. Failure to bash truthful could effect successful cessation of operations and ineligible consequences.

Bill would “destroy” Poland’s crypto market, critics warn

Receiving 230 votes successful favour and 196 against, Poland’s Crypto-Asset Market Act has sparked important backlash from some the crypto manufacture and immoderate Polish lawmakers.

Janusz Kowalski, a subordinate of the Sejm from the absorption Law and Justice (PiS) party, criticized Poland’s implementation of the EU’s MiCA regulation, calling it overly restrictive and informing it could jeopardize the country’s crypto marketplace and its 3 cardinal crypto holders.

Source: Janusz Kowalski (X station translated by Grok)

“This is the largest and astir restrictive cryptocurrency instrumentality successful the EU,” Kowalski wrote connected X aft the measure passed its 2nd speechmaking past Wednesday.

Related: MiCA nether unit arsenic nationalist regulators situation passporting

He highlighted the law’s excessive length, describing it arsenic “118 pages of overregulation” compared with overmuch shorter crypto authorities successful Germany, the Czech Republic and different EU subordinate states.

“Slowest regulator successful the EU”

Tomasz Mentzen, a Polish person and blockchain advocate, highlighted the challenges of implementing the caller crypto authorities amid Poland’s lengthy regulatory procedures.

“The KNF is the slowest-acting regulator successful the EU, with an mean exertion processing clip of 30 months,” helium wrote connected X past Wednesday.

Source: Thomasz Mentzen (tweet translated by Grok)

According to Mentzen, the Sejm’s support of the measure — with “yes” votes from members including Krystyna Skowrońska — signals a imaginable “destruction of blockchain and stablecoins” successful Poland.

He urged the Senate and President Karol Nawrocki to measurement successful and veto the authorities to safeguard Poland’s crypto market.

Poland’s president pledged to enactment crypto

Mentzen’s brother, Sławomir Mentzen, was among the Polish statesmanlike candidates who vowed to make a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve if elected successful 2025. In the archetypal circular connected May 18, 2025, helium secured 3rd spot with 14.8% of the vote, trailing down Rafał Trzaskowski and Nawrocki.

In the runoff connected June 1, Nawrocki won the presidency with 50.9% of the vote. Days earlier the election, helium pledged to enactment crypto, lasting up against “tyrannical regulations” restricting state and innovation.

Source: Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki (tweet translated by Grok)

“In Poland, innovations indispensable emerge, not regulations. As President of the Republic of Poland, I volition beryllium the guarantor that tyrannical regulations restricting your state bash not travel into effect,” Nawrocki wrote connected X connected May 28.

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