tl;dr
The Czech Republic's ruling coalition narrowly survived a no-confidence vote triggered by a Bitcoin scandal involving former Justice Minister Pavel Blazek, who accepted 468 Bitcoin from a convicted darknet drug trafficker. The Bitcoin had been confiscated and returned due to a legal technicality, th...
The Czech Republic's ruling coalition narrowly survived a no-confidence vote triggered by a Bitcoin scandal involving former Justice Minister Pavel Blazek. Blazek accepted 468 Bitcoin, valued at over $45 million, from a convicted darknet drug trafficker, Tomas Jirikovsky. The Bitcoin had been confiscated and returned due to a legal technicality, then sold by the justice department with around 30% of proceeds allocated to the state. Despite the controversy and calls for resignation, Blazek denied any wrongdoing but stepped down amid the political storm.
Blazek’s successor, Eva Decroix, was sworn in on June 10 and promptly ordered an independent audit of the transaction with promises of transparency and full cooperation with ongoing investigations. The scandal escalated opposition criticism, especially from the populist ANO party led by Andrej Babis, which claims the government mishandled cryptocurrency oversight and eroded public trust.
The no-confidence vote saw the center-right coalition led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala secure 98 votes against government collapse, narrowly beating 94 votes for it, within a parliament of 192 members present. This was the fourth such challenge since the coalition took power in 2021. Fiala dismissed opposition accusations as attempts to spread lies and divert attention. However, public concern remains over potential abuse of the state system to legalize income tied to criminal activities.
The scandal has intensified political tensions ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections in October, with ANO currently leading polls 32 to 20 percent over the Together (SPOLU) coalition, which includes Fiala’s ODS party. This episode underscores ongoing challenges in regulating cryptocurrencies and the political risks when digital assets intersect with legal and ethical boundaries.