POLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Michał Wołoszański, Łukasz Kudela and Marta Solarska-Kaleńczuk, Wołoszański & Partners
Code. In exceptional cases, where token holders or contributors have acted together in a manner compa- rable to an unregistered civil-law partnership ( spółka cywilna ), exposure under partnership-type rules can- not be excluded, although this analysis has not yet
of these two categories, depending on the reference asset. MiCA does not create a separate category for algorith- mic stablecoins. A token that purports to maintain a stable value through an algorithmic mechanism must still be analysed against the definitions of an EMT, ART or other crypto-asset. Where the token claims to maintain a stable value but does not have an iden - tifiable issuer and a compliant reserve of assets, it is unlikely to satisfy the authorisation and reserve requirements applicable to ARTs or EMTs. Such struc- tures are therefore difficult to bring within the regulat- ed stable-token framework under MiCA, but they are not subject to a standalone Polish prohibition merely because they are algorithmic. 6.2.2 Stablecoin Regulation MiCA Framework for Fiat-Backed Stablecoins Fiat-backed stablecoins are regulated in Poland under MiCA, which creates a bespoke EU framework for sta- ble tokens while interacting with the existing e-money and payment-services regimes. MiCA does not use “stablecoin” as a standalone operative category. A token referencing a single official currency will gener- ally be an e-money token (EMT), while a token refer- encing any other value, right or combination of values or rights – including more than one official currency, commodities or other crypto-assets – will generally be an asset-referenced token (ART). E-Money Tokens EMTs are treated as a DLT-based form of electronic money. They may be issued only by authorised credit institutions or electronic-money institutions and are subject both to MiCA-specific requirements and to the existing e-money and payment-services framework. In Poland, KNF already supervises credit institutions and electronic-money institutions under the existing financial-sector regimes, and the MiCA provisions on EMTs have applied since 30 June 2024. Where an EMT is classified as significant, enhanced require- ments apply and the EBA has additional supervisory powers. Asset-Referenced Tokens ARTs are subject to a separate MiCA regime outside the traditional e-money framework. ART issuers,
been tested by Polish higher courts. Regulatory Enforcement to Date
Polish regulators have not, to date, taken public enforcement action specifically against a DeFi proto- col or DAO participants. Enforcement in the crypto- asset sector has so far focused mainly on AML/CFT compliance, tax issues, fraud, money laundering and other general offences, often in centralised-platform contexts.
6. Payments and Stablecoins 6.1 Payments
Payments in Crypto-Assets Are Not Prohibited Crypto-assets are not legal tender in Poland; the Pol- ish zloty is legal tender, but parties may contractually agree to settle obligations in crypto-assets. Regulatory Perimeter Intermediation of crypto-asset payments on a pro- fessional basis is likely to require CASP authorisa- tion under MiCA, with cumulative obligations under the EU e-money framework where e-money tokens are involved. Fiat payment services remain regulated under the Polish Act on Payment Services transposing Payment Services Directive (EU) 2015/2366 (PSD2). Reform of PSD2 through the PSD3/Payment Servic- es Regulation package is expected to recalibrate the interface between fiat payment services and e-money and crypto-asset (in particular stablecoin-based) pay- ment arrangements. 6.2 Stablecoins 6.2.1 Fiat Currency and Algorithmic Stablecoins MiCA does not use the term “stablecoin” in its opera- tive provisions. Instead, it distinguishes between EMTs, which reference a single official currency, and ARTs, which reference any other value, right or com- bination of values or rights, including more than one official currency, commodities or other crypto-assets. Fiat-backed stablecoins will generally fall within one
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