Poland's Zondacrypto hit by fraud probe after 4,500 BTC allegedly goes missing

BlockBeats reported on May 5 that Polish cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto is under a major fraud investigation after 4,500 bitcoins held in a cold wallet became inaccessible. Authorities say the platform's former CEO vanished in 2022 and is believed to have taken the wallet's private key. The BTC stash is now worth more than $340 million. Zondacrypto's current CEO has acknowledged he cannot access the cold wallet and has reportedly fled to Israel. Prosecutors estimate potential client losses at about $97 million. On-chain data indicates the exchange's hot-wallet Bitcoin balance has fallen 99.7% since mid-2024, with users widely reporting withdrawal problems. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said as many as 30,000 users may have been affected. Tusk publicly alleged the platform was financed by Russian-linked funds and used to bankroll opposition lawmakers seeking to block Poland's cryptocurrency regulatory legislation. He described the case as a "Polish version of a Ponzi scheme" and criticized the president for twice vetoing Poland's local implementation of the EU's MiCA framework, saying it has turned the country into a "haven for fraudsters." Zondacrypto's board said it has been unable to obtain "verifiable information" from the missing former CEO and has resigned collectively. The founder has remained missing since 2022, and a previously cited case involving kidnapping allegations is still under investigation. The episode is expected to intensify regulatory scrutiny of crypto exchanges in Poland and across the European Union.