Przemysław Kral, the head of collapsed cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto, has reportedly been charged with participating in an alleged large-scale fraud and has begun cooperating with Polish prosecutors, according to Polish outlet Onet.
Onet reported Monday that Kral is seeking a reduced sentence in exchange for testimony that could include details about Zondacrypto’s funding of right-wing politicians.
Prosecutors estimate at least 2.4 billion zlotys in customer losses
According to Onet, prosecutors estimate that Zondacrypto customers lost at least 2.4 billion Polish zlotys, or about $650 million. Investigators said the exchange used only part of customer funds to buy crypto, while the rest was transferred to private accounts controlled by Zondacrypto managers.
On Friday, Onet also reported that Kral had been negotiating the terms of possible cooperation with prosecutors for six months. He reportedly held informal meetings with prosecutors in Poland, Sicily and Persian Gulf countries to discuss a potential deal.
Kral has stayed silent on X since mid-April wallet disclosure
Kral has not posted on X since publicly disclosing in mid-April that Zondacrypto could not access a cold wallet holding about 4,500 Bitcoin.
He has denied accusations of misappropriating funds and said the wallet’s private keys were supposed to have been transferred by Zonda founder and former CEO Sylwester Suszek, who has been missing since 2022.
Report details political links and spending
Zondacrypto was the main sponsor of the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, held in Poland days before the second round of the presidential election won by Karol Nawrocki.
The exchange spent 37 million zlotys on advertising with broadcaster Telewizja Republika in its final year, the report said. It also said companies owned by Kral made payments to foundations linked to politicians Zbigniew Ziobro and Przemysław Wipler.
Cointelegraph could not reach Kral or the exchange
Cointelegraph said it was unable to reach Kral or Zondacrypto for comment. Their email addresses have been unavailable since Kral’s April disclosure that the exchange could not access the Bitcoin wallet.