Another day, Cinkciarz.pl informs that “due to technical reasons, the execution of currency exchange transactions may take longer than usual.” A similar message has been posted regularly since July. There was information in the media that PLN 150 million was missing from the company's accounts, which the company strongly denies. However, he admits that the head of the holding recently met with the president of the National Bank of Poland, Adam Glapiński, regarding a loan and support in obtaining a banking license.
“On Wednesday, October 23, 2024, due to technical reasons, the execution of currency exchange transactions may take longer than usual. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask for your patience. Multi-currency cards, money transfers and payments are currently not available. We are working to restore full functionality. Available services are: currency exchange, currency wallet, social transactions, standing orders, direct debits, currency alerts, loans and Invest & Forex” – this is the message that customers of the Cinkciarz.pl online currency exchange can read. The company has been publishing information about possible problems regularly since July.
At the turn of September and October, the Polish Financial Supervision Authority announced that it was taking action following customer complaints regarding the provision of currency exchange services by the Cinkciarz.pl currency exchange office. He also received reports regarding this matter Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. As we informed, customers were affected by delays in the execution of currency exchange and money transfers. The company explained the fault, which “may last until the end of October”.
Read more: Long delays in the payment of money. “I've been blocked for a week” >>>
Permission withdrawn
At the beginning of October, the Polish Financial Supervision Authority withdrew the authorization to provide payment services to Cinkciarz's sister company – Conotoxia sp. z o. o. It was explained then that the consequence of the decision would be, among others, deletion of the company and its agents from the register of payment service providers. At that time, the company informed that it was taking legal steps to repeal the Commission's decision as soon as possible.
Then, the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Poznań announced that it had initiated an investigation into a company belonging to an online currency exchange office after notifying the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.
At the same time, Cinkciarz.pl and Conotoxia announced lawsuits against the largest banks operating in Poland due to the denial of access to their currency platforms, which made it impossible to conclude currency exchange transactions.
“Our fintech has serious grounds to believe that the president of one of the largest banks operating in Poland actively lobbied to revoke our company's license to provide payment services. These actions, based on pressure and unfair practices, may have serious consequences for fair competition and transparency. financial market,” explained representatives of Cinkciarz.
Stalemate in the Conotoxia case
“Gazeta Wyborcza” reported on Tuesday that “the highest state authorities are interested in the issue of the currency exchange office.” – We are watching what happens next. PLN 150 million has been lost, some of it may still be recovered, but it is difficult to estimate how much – said one of the officials.
According to “GW”, this is probably because Cinkciarz may not have enough of this amount for the current execution of customer orders and hence the delays. “This does not mean that the company does not have this money, but the question remains open as to what happened to the customers' money,” we read.
In a statement sent to the tvn24.pl business editorial office on Wednesday, the management board of Conotoxia denies this information. “We would like to point out that “The above-mentioned hypothesis is based entirely on unconfirmed and anonymous considerations of the service's interlocutor, presented as 'one of the officials',” we read in the sent statement.
It was added that the company's management board “has repeatedly informed the Polish Financial Supervision Authority about the attitude of banks, which for years have been violating the principle of equal treatment of enterprises and hindering the company's access to the market by introducing a ban on cooperation with entities from the Cinkciarz.pl group.” “These signals were left unanswered each time,” it was written.
“The Commission's inaction was also met with written information about delays amounting to tens of millions of zlotys on the part of payment providers. Conotoxia sp. z o. o. informed the Commission about this in correspondence of August 22, 2024. In the same letter, the company also informed the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, that after years of unsuccessful efforts to obtain a loan on the domestic market, we finally managed to obtain financing from one of the foreign banks. Unfortunately, on October 3, i.e. the day after the Commission's hasty and unfair decision to withdraw the authorization to provide payment services, it was suspended,” the company explained.
Meeting with the President of the National Bank of Poland
Conotoxia informs that its current priority is to search for an investor whose support would enable the company's further development and at the same time it is taking steps to eliminate the decision of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority to withdraw the license from legal circulation. “Within a few days, we will appeal against the decision itself and submit a motion to the court to waive its immediate enforceability,” the company announced.
At the same time, the company decided to seek help from the central bank, which was first reported by Money.pl.
“Yes, it is true. Marcin Pióro met with President (Adam) Glapiński and part of the management board of the National Bank of Poland. The founder and president of Conotoxia Holding (the parent company of Cinkciarz and Conotoxia – ed.) asked the NBP for a loan, as well as support regarding the license banking” – wrote Marcin Starkowski, PR Manager of Cinkciarz.pl, in a message sent to the business editorial office of tvn24.pl.
He added that the meeting took place at the NBP headquarters on September 24, just over a week before the Polish Financial Supervision Authority withdrew the company's license to provide payment services.
NBP did not respond to a request for comment on this matter.
The Polish Financial Supervision Authority comments
President Pióro met with the president of the National Bank of Poland regarding a banking license, but it is not this institution that grants it. This is what the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) deals with.
“The KNF office is not authorized to comment or evaluate the activities of other state institutions, in this case the National Bank of Poland,” Jacek Barszczewski, director of the KNF's social communication department, replied when asked about the case. He also pointed out that “the Polish Financial Supervision Authority has not received an application to 'merge into a bank' formulated by the Conotoxia 'Holding Companies' or any other application to obtain a banking license.”
The representative of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority indicated that “Cinkciarz.pl may continue to provide currency exchange services.”
“However, due to the withdrawal by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority of the authorization of Conotoxia sp. z o. o. to provide payment services as a domestic payment institution – Cinkciarz.pl is no longer able to offer payment services of Conotoxia sp. z o. o., including those involving the transfer of funds to another a client of the recipient's currency exchange office (e.g. on the account of his foreign contractor or a mortgage repayment account at a bank). Cinkciarz.pl could offer such a service to its clients as an agent of Conotoxia,” we read in the answer to our questions.
The Office reminds that “the activities of Cinkciarz.pl – as an online currency exchange office – are not regulated and are not subject to supervision by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority. Therefore, deficiencies in the provision of currency exchange services do not constitute grounds for taking supervisory actions by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.”
Therefore, “persons against whom Cinkciarz.pl has not performed the currency exchange agreement, and in particular has not returned the funds entrusted to it or exchanged in accordance with this agreement, should take individual legal steps in this matter, including filing an appropriate lawsuit in court, and in the event of suspicion of committing a crime – report the case to law enforcement authorities,” Jacek Barszczewski pointed out.
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