Digital asset regulation and tokenization in Poland

A business planning crypto-asset services in Poland must distinguish MiCA’s direct application from the availability of the national procedure. The legislative impasse affects domestic access and supervisory powers; it does not remove the European Regulation or turn former registration into a current license.

Tokenizing shares raises different questions: the Commercial Companies Code permits distributed registers under specific conditions. The project must establish whether it involves securities issuance or crypto-asset services, identify the responsible entity and document an access route that is actually available.

What the national MiCA legislative impasse means

MiCA applies directly in Poland within its respective scopes and application dates. Missing domestic legislation on responsibilities and procedures does not remove its requirements. Tokenized financial instruments remain outside MiCA and subject to securities rules governing issuance and related services.

The Sejm has passed three crypto-asset market acts and the President has vetoed each of them: the act of November 7, 2025, vetoed on December 1, 2025; the act of December 18, 2025, vetoed on February 12, 2026; and the act of May 15, 2026, vetoed on June 11, 2026. On each occasion the three-fifths majority required to override the veto was not reached.

The parliamentary record for the May 2026 legislation shows that on September 4, 2026, the motion to pass it again received 241 votes, against the 266 required. As of October 16, 2026, the Sejm lists as pending a private members' bill on the crypto-asset market, received on June 18, 2026, with no further recorded steps, which would designate KNF as supervisor; no presidential bill after the latest veto is recorded. A bill or an announcement does not establish that a domestic CASP authorization route exists or that the proposed procedures are available.

Which powers KNF retains

UKNF's position on absent domestic designation distinguishes CASPs, ART issuers and certain offers, for which no authority has been designated, from EMT issuers, for which KNF retains competence. Inclusion in a European list with a designation reservation does not establish all necessary domestic powers.

Existing financial responsibilities remain relevant to banking, electronic money and financial instruments. Multi-component operations need assessment by entity, asset and service. An authorized investment firm cannot presume that its permission covers every crypto-asset activity; MiCA Article 60 defines available routes for specific institutions and services.

Access routes to verify after transition

The transitional period under MiCA Article 143(3) ended on July 1, 2026. According to UKNF's position, without a designated authority, domestic entities lose the ability to provide services from that date until they obtain authorization, and authorization proceedings can only be initiated in Poland once a law designates the competent authority; the deadline cannot be extended by statute or by a KNF decision. KNF also relays the notice of the Tax Administration Chamber in Katowice: entry in the register of virtual currency activities is not a MiCA authorization and does not permit operating after July 1, in Poland or abroad. As of October 16, 2026, ESMA's interim register lists no authorized provider with Poland as home Member State. The domestic route therefore depends on that law being passed.

MiCA Article 65 permits cross-border services from an authorized entity in another Member State following notification to its home authority. This does not mean a Polish company can use a foreign subsidiary's license. The contracting entity, authorized services and notification must correspond; local functions require their own regulatory and contractual assessment.

How distributed shareholder registers work

The Commercial Companies Code allows certain shareholder registers to use distributed and decentralized databases. Articles 300³¹ and 328¹ assign the register to an entity entitled to maintain securities accounts, or also to a notary for the simple joint-stock company under Article 300³¹, and require data security and integrity. For non-public joint-stock companies, Article 328⁹ generally links acquisition to registration, subject to statutory exceptions.

KNF's published DLT procedure provides for specific financial instrument infrastructure permissions under Regulation 2022/858. This route is distinct from CASP access. Technical recording of a token does not establish valid share issuance, holder identity or compliance with transfer formalities for the represented right. It is also worth following the Commission proposal COM(2025) 943 of December 4, 2025, which would remove the time limit on DLT Pilot Regime permissions, raise its volume limit and transfer to ESMA the authorization and supervision of crypto-asset service providers, except credit institutions and the financial entities covered by MiCA Article 60. It is a proposal still pending in the legislative process, not law in force.

Continuing duties for technology and transfers

For providers within its scope, DORA requires ICT risk, incident and outsourcing management. Distributed infrastructure must remain compatible with recovery, record access and operator accountability. Technology architecture does not itself settle client-asset insolvency treatment or arrangements for returning assets.

The EU Transfer of Funds Regulation requires originator and beneficiary information for covered operations. This must be coordinated with applicable anti-money laundering and sanctions controls. In tax matters, the Act of 13 February 2026, in force since March 18, 2026, transposes the EU administrative cooperation directive for crypto-assets (DAC8): reporting providers must obtain their clients' tax residence self-certifications and report to the tax administration, by June 30 of the following year, the information for each calendar year; the first period is 2026.

Persons who were already clients on March 17, 2026, had to be asked for that self-certification by October 31, 2026, and, if it is not received by December 31, 2026, reportable transactions must be blocked until it is provided. Before contracting, the responsible entity and its actual authorization must be verified; the absence of a domestic procedure does not make all cross-border services either unlawful or unconditionally permissible.

What to confirm before establishing Polish operations

Establishing a domestic provider requires checking legislation and procedure before committing to launch. Where an entity authorized in another Member State is used, the contracting entity, permitted services and cross-border notification must match; permission does not transfer between group companies.

For tokenized securities, select an entitled register operator and document registration and transfer rules. The consolidated Code includes amendments applying in the future, so the application should identify the version relevant to the transaction date.

To understand how this framework applies to your project, discuss your case with our team.