“Money flows on the Internet.” Żurek: Almost 7 thousand. cryptocurrency investigations

Over the last 2 years, almost seven thousand investigations into crimes related to cryptocurrencies have been initiated, said Waldemar Żurek, head of the Ministry of Justice in Suwałki on Wednesday.

The Minister of Justice and the Prosecutor General met on Wednesday with the judges of the District Court in Suwałki and handed the nomination act to the president of this court, Marcin Walczuk.

In the evening, he attended a meeting with residents, where he talked about the rule of law in Poland. He criticized, among others, President Karol Nawrocki, who vetoed the act on the crypto-asset market.

I counted that in the last two years we have had almost seven thousand investigations related to cryptocurrencies and mass dismissals because the money is spreading on the Internet all over the world – said Żurek.

He emphasized that the state must take care of its citizens with legal regulations and services that will effectively prosecute criminals. – This act proposed by the Ministry of Finance (…) is extensive because it provides for various situations. It is not known why the president says “blocking” – said the minister. He added that such an issue should be apolitical so that citizens do not suffer.

He noted that you need to be an outstanding expert to play on the cryptocurrency exchange. He emphasized that it was a very risky business because… they create various types of pseudo-exchangeswhich have the shape of pyramids, and people are deceived.

December 1 this year The president's office announced that President Karol Nawrocki vetoed the act on the crypto-assets market passed on November 7 this year. According to the head of the president's office, Zbigniew Bogucki, Nawrocki's decision to veto was due to, among others, because the act introduced excessive, ambiguous and disproportionate solutions.

The Sejm did not reject the presidential veto in Friday's vote. After the vote, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced the quick submission of a new draft act on the crypto-assets market.

On Tuesday, the Council of Ministers adopted the draft act on the crypto-assets market. This bill is identical to the bill vetoed by the president.

As stated in the justification, the aim of the project is to ensure the application of the MiCA regulation (The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation). It states that the MiCA regulation “sets out a harmonized legal framework for crypto-asset markets across Member States, introducing detailed rules on crypto-assets, related services and activities that are not yet covered by EU financial services legislative acts.”

The project also aims to “introduce supervisory measures aimed at counteracting violations that may be committed by supervised entities”, including enabling the Polish Financial Supervision Authority to suspend the public offering of cryptoassets, interrupt its course for a specified period, prohibit the launch of a public offering or prohibit the admission of cryptoassets to trading. The Polish Financial Supervision Authority will also be able to impose sanctions “on offerors, issuers or persons applying for the admission of cryptoassets, as well as the introduction of supervisory powers of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, including the possibility of imposing a fine on persons professionally intermediating in concluding transactions related to cryptoassets.”

The bill also introduces criminal liability for crimes committed, among others: in connection with issuing tokens related to assets or tokens constituting e-money, or providing services in the field of cryptoassets. (PAP)

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