Radoslaw Piesiewicz, president of the Polish Olympic Committee, has been arrested and charged with two offenses as prosecutors investigate payments and financial ties connected to the collapsed crypto exchange Zondacrypto.
Prosecutors Charge Piesiewicz With Influence and Favoritism
Poland's Justice Minister and Prosecutor General Waldemar Zurek confirmed the arrest on Aug. 27, saying Piesiewicz had been taken into custody as part of the Zondacrypto investigation. Prosecutors charged Piesiewicz under Articles 230 and 302 of Poland's criminal code, concerning paid influence and satisfying one group of creditors at the expense of others while insolvency was approaching. Piesiewicz has not been convicted, and prosecutors have yet to publish a full account of the evidence supporting the charges.
One allegation concerns money Piesiewicz held on Zondacrypto before the platform stopped processing customer withdrawals. Investigators suspect that Piesiewicz received information allowing him to remove his entire investment from the exchange while other creditors could not access their funds. This investigation follows other major crypto enforcement actions, including the CFTC's warning about crypto ATM scams driving $388M in losses.
Zondacrypto Probe Examines Watch and Sponsorship Ties
A joint investigation by Wirtualna Polska and TVN24 examined Piesiewicz's relationship with former Zondacrypto chief Przemyslaw Kral. Documents and messages allegedly showed that Kral bought a Patek Philippe Calatrava watch for 40,000 euros in November 2025, nine days before meeting Piesiewicz at a hotel in Monaco. Piesiewicz later sent messages thanking Kral, although the messages did not refer directly to the watch. Piesiewicz has maintained that the watch was not a gift and said he paid for it in cash.
Piesiewicz and Kral met during sponsorship talks in spring 2025. By October, Zondacrypto had become the Polish Olympic Committee's general sponsor under an agreement running from 2026 through 2028. The Olympic Center in Warsaw was renamed the Zondacrypto Olympic Center. This case parallels other crypto-related enforcement actions, including the Chainalysis identification of 7,700 suspect accounts in a separate operation.
Customer Losses Exceed 350 Million Zlotys
The case forms part of a criminal investigation opened by the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Katowice on April 17. Authorities are examining suspected fraud against Zondacrypto customers and possible money laundering connected to activity dating from 2022. Estimated customer losses stand at no less than 350 million zlotys, equal to about $94 million. Authorities had received more than 3,600 complaints by June and secured over 100 million zlotys that may later be used to compensate affected customers.
Zondacrypto's website went offline on April 23 after customers reported delayed withdrawals and frozen balances. The exchange-linked ZND token subsequently lost almost all its market value. Authorities said the exchange's owner claimed Zondacrypto had lacked access since 2022 to a cold wallet believed to hold about 4,500 Bitcoin. In July, authorities merged the Zondacrypto inquiry with an investigation into the March 2022 disappearance of Sylwester Suszek, who founded BitBay before it was renamed Zondacrypto.