Polish Olympic chief received €40,000 watch from boss of failed crypto exchange

Poland’s Olympic Committee chief received a watch worth EUR 40,000 from the boss of the now-collapsed cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto, according to a media investigation.

Polish Olympic Committee president Radosław Piesiewicz speaks to the media in Warsaw on 15 June 2026.

Photo: PAP/Leszek Szymański

News outlet Wirtualna Polska and private broadcaster TVN24 reported that Radosław Piesiewicz had offered to help Zondacrypto chief executive Przemysław Kral with an investigation by Poland’s competition watchdog (UOKiK) into the sources of the company’s funds.

The report says the watch was given in autumn 2025 after Piesiewicz told Kral he could make the case go away.

🔴Szef Zondacrypto, prezes PKOl i złoty zegarek za 40 tysięcy euro

Prezes Polskiego Komitetu Olimpijskiego Radosław Piesiewicz dostał od szefa Zondacrypto Przemysława Krala zegarek Patek Philippe wart 40 tysięcy euro oraz inne prezenty - wynika z ustaleń wspólnego śledztwa…

— Wirtualna Polska (@wirtualnapolska) August 24, 2026

The Olympic Committee chief claimed he had bought the timepiece with his own money and repaid the businessman in cash in installments.

Former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and competition watchdog chief Tomasz Chróstny denied helping Piesiewicz.

Zondacrypto signed a sponsorship deal with the Polish Olympic Committee in October 2025, but the partnership has since ended.

Meanwhile, Kral is reported to have become a state witness.

(ał)

Source: IAR