A runaway tycoon and millions in crypto: Polish scandal stokes Tusk-Nawrocki fight

(Wojciech Kosc – Politico) The troubles of a cryptocurrency firm that sponsored one of America’s flagship conservative gatherings are turning into a major political battle in Poland. The exchange, Zondacrypto, is under investigation by Polish prosecutors over what they say are at least 350 million złoty (€82.5 million) in potential losses caused by misleading clients; while the exchange’s boss, Przemysław Kral, is now in Israel. He says he is innocent and that Zondacrypto is still solvent. The broader effort to regulate crypto — and the Zondacrypto fiasco specifically — is currently pitting pro-EU Prime Minister Donald Tusk against nationalist President Karol Nawrocki and his supporters in the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party. The fight is part of a wider political battle ahead of next year’s parliamentary election, where Tusk’s center-right liberal Civic Coalition is in the lead, but could still lose power to a coalition of right-wing parties. – A runaway tycoon and millions in crypto: Polish scandal stokes Tusk-Nawrocki fight – POLITICO