Poland is delaying legislation to regulate the cryptocurrency market as the president’s plan and the government’s plan clash head-on over how to oversee the sector.

On May 7, blockchain outlet Cryptopolitan reported that Poland must incorporate the European Union’s cryptocurrency regulatory framework MiCA into domestic law by July 1, 2026, but political conflict is delaying legislation.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki (카롤 나브로츠키) submitted a separate bill to the lower house, the Sejm, to govern cryptocurrency trading in the country. The bill is positioned as an alternative to the government’s proposed Crypto-Asset Market Act advanced by Prime Minister Donald Tusk (도날트 투스크).

Nawrocki has rejected the government bill twice in recent months. An attempt by the ruling camp to override his veto was also blocked by opposition from conservative and nationalist forces in parliament. As a result, Poland’s debate over crypto regulation has shifted away from passing a single bill to a structure in which the government and presidential bills compete.

The president’s side presented consumer and investor protection, effective state supervision and guaranteeing the rights of industry companies as the core pillars of the new bill. According to Bitcoin.com and Money.pl, presidential chief of staff Zbigniew Bogucki (즈비그니에프 보고츠키) explained the three points as the bill’s central principles at a news conference. He said the bill targets all stakeholders who have been waiting for regulation of Poland’s crypto market.

The government is not backing down. Tusk said on May 6 that the government bill that faced a veto could be resubmitted to parliament as early as this week. Changes to its content are not large, but it plans to further strengthen punishment for platforms and individuals that deceived crypto investors, reflecting a recently occurring exchange liquidity crisis.

The government bill also includes an expanded role for Poland’s Financial Supervision Authority, KNF. It would allow the KNF to issue advance warnings to investors before investigative authorities become involved. Poland’s crypto industry, however, has opposed the structure, saying it could give excessive power to the supervisory authority. Nawrocki also cited excessive regulation and burdens on small companies as reasons for blocking the government bill.

The political confrontation is intensifying alongside the recently collapsed Zondacrypto case. Zondacrypto, a Polish trading platform, saw customer access to funds blocked in early April amid liquidity problems, and there is speculation that up to 30,000 Poles may have been affected. Officials in the Tusk government criticised opposition politicians and the president, saying they hindered regulatory legislation and worsened the crisis. Claims have also been raised that the crypto firm, registered in Estonia, supported conservative-leaning political events and figures in Poland while lobbying against the government bill.

The issue goes beyond a simple domestic political conflict and is directly linked to the European Union’s regulatory timetable. Poland must incorporate MiCA standards into domestic law by July 1, 2026. Crypto service providers must obtain licences before then to continue operating legally, but Nawrocki is likely to exercise his veto again on the government bill, and the presidential bill is also in a situation where securing sufficient support in the Sejm will not be easy.

As a result, Poland’s crypto market agrees on the need to introduce regulation, but uncertainty is growing ahead of the implementation deadline due to political clashes over supervisory intensity and burdens on the industry. The longer the regulatory vacuum lasts, the more inevitable disruptions are expected in exchanges’ and service providers’ preparations for licensing.