The Tour de Suisse proudly presented its new partner Zondacrypto on 30 March: "With Zondacrypto, we have gained an innovative partner that is internationally anchored in the sport and invests specifically in the future of cycling. The combination of technology and innovation fits perfectly with the strategic realignment of the Tour de Suisse, where we are increasingly focussing on innovation, fan proximity and new activation opportunities," explained Gabriela Buchs, CEO of Cycling Unlimited. Zondacrypto was announced as a premium partner of the Tour de Suisse, sponsoring the junior jersey. In the meantime, the Tour has pulled the emergency brake: "The sponsorship with Zondacrypto for this special classification announced at the end of March has proven to be unsustainable and has therefore been cancelled by the Tour de Suisse organisers with immediate effect." Canyon//Sram Racing are also likely to be worried - the team had only announced a sponsorship agreement with the crypto exchange until 2028. This appears to be just as threatened as the sponsorship of the Giro d'Italia Women. This is because an economic crisis is emerging around Zondacrypto, which has been making headlines for weeks.
Zondacrypto: first payment problems
At the beginning of April, hundreds of customers reported that they had been unable to withdraw their funds. Polish media reported that, according to analyses, 99 per cent of the platform's cryptocurrency balance had disappeared. At the same time, Polish sports teams reported that due sponsorship payments had not been made. Poland's largest cryptocurrency exchange publicly denied this and spoke of a delay in payment due to a security update. However, the company did not provide any evidence that reserves were still available. The Polish Financial Supervision Authority launched an investigation and astonishing details followed. When looking at the general terms and conditions, the Skarbiec law firm discovered that customers' crypto balances can earn interest at minus 20 per cent per month. After five months, the credit would be eaten up. According to the Skarbiec law firm, the exchange is also not responsible for the loss of credit balances and can change the terms and conditions at any time with seven days' notice.
Zondacrypto and the missing company boss
As if that wasn't enough of a whodunit, a questionable explanation from the company followed. The CEO, who disappeared without a trace in 2022, took the key to a wallet worth 300 million dollars with him. Zondacrypto CEO Przemysław Kral (45) claims that Suszek sold his Bitcoin wallet to Zondacrypto years ago. However, only Suszek could access the bitcoins. The former CEO, Sylwester Suszek, actually disappeared without a trace in 2022 - it has only now been announced that access to the 300 million dollars is no longer possible. According to Polish media, family members assume that Suszek is no longer alive. In an exciting crime thriller, there would be enough climaxes by now, but it gets even more dramatic.
Traces of the Russian mafia
As the daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza and the Polish public TV station TVP both report, the company has long been in the hands of the Russian mafia. It was taken over in 2018 by Tambovskaya Bratva, a powerful Russian mafia network based in St. Petersburg with alleged links to the Kremlin. The transaction is said to have been concealed via letterbox companies in the United Arab Emirates. TVP refers to findings by the Polish domestic intelligence service ABW. Since April, more than 700 customers have filed complaints because they were unable to withdraw their money. The public prosecutor's office in Katowice is also investigating possible Russian influence. As TVP further reports, Prime Minister Donald Tusk had already referred to a "Russian trail" in a closed parliamentary session in December 2024, explicitly referring to "Bratva" and its alleged links to the Russian state. Polish prosecutors launched an investigation into the company on 17 April on suspicion of fraud and money laundering.
Website is offline
The investigation by the Polish judiciary has only just begun - but there are no illusions in Poland. A large neon sign advertising the cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto was removed from the headquarters of the Polish Olympic Committee last week as the deadline for unpaid sponsorship payments had expired. Prime Minister Donald Tusk has launched a push in parliament to regulate cryptocurrency trading more strictly by law. The zondacrypto.com website had been offline for several days at the time of research. It remains to be seen how the thriller will continue.
Kristian Bauer
Editor
