As Lawmakers open debate on four competing crypto bills, Poland’s former governing party has shifted its stance and introduced legislation to ban all digital asset activities in the country.
Sejm To Debate Crypto Legislation, Total Ban Proposals
On Tuesday, the Sejm, the lower chamber of the Polish parliament, began reviewing various bills to regulate the crypto market in Poland, following lawmakers’ failure to overturn President Karol Nawrocki’s veto of earlier legislation on the sector.
Ahead of the session, the Law and Justice (PiS) withdrew its crypto market bill after four of the party’s MPs pulled their support, and submitted a new bill pushing a total ban on digital asset-related activities in the country.
According to local reports, Sejm Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty criticized PiS’s shift, calling the change “astonishing” as the party’s proposal was scheduled for its first reading this week, and one of the bills to be reviewed today was filed by President Nawrocki, whom the party backs.
The other crypto bills submitted to the Sejm include proposals from the government and opposition parties Poland 2050 and Confederation.
The government and presidential bills are broadly similar, the report noted, with the primary differences being the Financial Supervision Authority’s power to freeze crypto accounts and the scale of fines for individuals who commit fraud.
While the Ministry of Finance’s draft proposes a maximum penalty of PLN 25 million, or $6.9 million, for obstructing inspections, the president’s text sets it at PLN 20 million, or $4.5 million.
Czarzasty revealed that the four bills concerning crypto market legislation will be reviewed and debated this week, and the PiS ban proposal will be considered after the process for the other bills is completed. The second reading of the bills is scheduled for Thursday, May 14.
“So the first decision is as follows: first, we will proceed with the four bills entering the Sejm today; once the legislative process for these bills is complete, we will proceed with the PiS parliamentary club’s bill, provided the club does not withdraw it,” the Sejm Speaker stated.
Zondacrypto Controversy Fuels Veto Debate
Czarzasty also renewed questions about the recent Zondacrypto controversy, including its alleged links to Polish political parties and Russian organized crime, and pressed for an explanation as to why President Nawrocki vetoed the Crypto-Asset Market Act twice.
For context, Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused crypto firm Zondacrypto of being backed by Russian money and having sponsored lawmakers who opposed digital asset regulation.
Ahead of the failed vote to overturn Nawrocki’s veto of the law last month, Tusk claimed that the blocking of regulations by some Polish politicians signaled they were serving the interests of the company.
Tusk affirmed that the firm “sponsors political and social events in Poland and promotes very specific political forces,” including by financing politicians from PiS and Confederation parties. He also claimed that the president was fully aware of Zondacrypto’s situation when he vetoed the proposed regulations.
However, Zbigniew Bogucki, head of the president’s office, responded to the accusations, asserting that Nawrocki was not opposing Poland’s digital asset market regulation, but that the government had proposed a “flawed” regulatory model.
As reported by Bitcoinist, the president’s office had stated that the president was trying to prevent “overregulation” and abuse of the “legal mess” proposed by the Polish government.
Sławomir Mentzen, leader of the Confederation party, said the new legislation would have “destroyed the Polish cryptocurrency market.” Similarly, Polish economist Krzysztof Piech praised the president’s decision, affirming that it “violated the Polish Constitution and was contrary to the EU regulation it was supposed to implement in Poland.”
The total crypto market capitalization is at $2.65 trillion in the one-week chart. Source: TOTAL on TradingView
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
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