Olympic Committee President Arrested: Estimated $94 Million Customer Loss in Crypto
Radosław Piesiewicz, President of the Polish Olympic Committee, has been arrested as part of an investigation into potential financial kickbacks in the Zondacrypto case; the investigation estimates customer losses of at least $94 million.
Polish Minister of Justice and Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek confirmed that Radosław Piesiewicz has been arrested. It was stated that new information regarding the investigation will be shared following Piesiewicz’s testimony. At this stage, authorities have not disclosed the formal charges against him.
The arrest is a new development in the broader fraud and money laundering investigation into Zondacrypto. Prosecutors announced that for years, the exchange has been unable to access a cold wallet containing approximately 4,500 Bitcoins where crypto assets were stored offline; they estimate customer losses to be at least 350 million zloty, or approximately $94 million.
Watch allegation in the Zondacrypto investigation
A joint investigation by Wirtualna Polska and TVN24 alleged that Zondacrypto executive Przemysław Kral gave Piesiewicz a Patek Philippe watch worth approximately 40,000 euros and other gifts. Allegedly, these gifts were provided in exchange for assistance with problems the exchange was facing with the Polish Competition Authority.
Piesiewicz, on the other hand, stated that he did not receive the watch as a gift, but paid for it in cash, and that Kral only assisted with the purchasing process. Żurek explained that the watch is one of the elements being reviewed by prosecutors.
Zondacrypto became the general sponsor of the Polish Olympic Committee in October. In addition to the agreement covering the 2026-2028 period, prosecutors are also investigating the alleged financial kickbacks given to Piesiewicz and other payments linked to the exchange.
The investigation was launched in April on suspicions of fraud and money laundering. Having received more than 3,600 complaints by June, authorities have secured over 100 million zloty in funds for potential compensation. Last month, the case was merged with the investigation into the 2022 disappearance of Sylwester Suszek, the founder of BitBay (Zondacrypto’s previous name).