Polish president rejects MiCA bill - legal tensions

Decision from Poland

Europe’s landmark crypto framework — the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation — has hit an unexpected political snag after the Polish president vetoed the national compliance bill needed to implement MiCA domestically.

The veto creates a temporary regulatory vacuum in one of Eastern Europe's largest economies and causes uncertainty just months before the EU expects MiCA's rules on stablecoins, exchanges and service providers to be fully implemented across the bloc.

While MiCA is EU law, each member state must pass unified national legislation to establish licensing processes, enforcement powers, tax regimes, and supervisory coordination. Poland’s rejection marks the first major national-level opposition to the implementation process — and raises questions about political motivations, industry impact, and the timetable for regulatory harmonization across the continent.

Reasons for the President's Veto of the Bill

While the official reason given revolved around “legal inadequacies and insufficient consumer protection”, analysts noted that the veto was rooted more deeply in Poland's internal political tensions.

Key factors that may influence this decision include:

(1) Political Power Dispute

The Polish government currently faces a competitive political landscape, with the president and parliament frequently at odds over economic and technological policy. The MiCA veto gives the president leverage over parliamentary agendas and delays policies seen as beneficial to rival political factions.

(2) Concerns about Burden on Local Businesses

Critics within the government say the bill could impose high compliance costs on domestic exchanges, fintechs and payments companies – potentially consolidating the market in favor of larger EU companies and pushing innovation outside Poland.

(3) Report on Sovereignty Regulation

Some policymakers have expressed frustration with what they see as excessive EU oversight, particularly in financial services. The veto allows the president to position himself as a guardian of national autonomy in a highly technical and little-known policy area.

Stress Test for MiCA

The promise of MiCA is regulatory harmonization across the 27 EU member states. However, Poland’s veto exposes a structural risk:

• EU law may mandate standards, but national governments still have to work together to enforce them.

Other countries with political divisions or concerns about losing competitiveness in the fintech sector could follow Poland's example, creating a patchwork rather than unified regulatory environment.

Furthermore, Poland's delay in compliance complicates EU-wide enforcement of:

• Regulations on stablecoin reserves (June 2024–2025 period).

• CASP licensing (implementation 2025).

• Coordinate cross-border surveillance.

The case could force Brussels to consider stronger central supervisory mechanisms or intervention powers for ESMA and EBA in future amendments to MiCA.

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