Can holding Bitcoin make you a target? France’s scary new reality

• France faces a surge in violent kidnappings targeting crypto holders and industry figures.
• Experts urge stronger security and regulations as global crypto-related crimes intensify.

As cryptocurrency adoption grows across Europe, so too does the dark underbelly of crypto-related crime, with France now struggling with a disturbing surge in digital asset kidnappings.

Crypto kidnapping in Maisons-Alfort

In a recent and alarming incident near Paris, a 23-year-old man was abducted in the suburb of Maisons-Alfort and held hostage for several hours.

The attackers demanded €5,000 in cash and access to the victim’s Ledger hardware wallet, reportedly using physical violence to extract sensitive information about his crypto holdings.

Although he was later released in Créteil, the event adds to a worrying pattern of targeted assaults on crypto holders in the country. 

Similarly, in Normandy, police recently thwarted a planned abduction after receiving a tip from a 22-year-old crypto trader and his mother, who reported being followed.

The timely arrest of five suspects prevented what could have been another violent incident. This followed an even more shocking case involving Ledger co-founder David Balland.

Balland and his wife were kidnapped from their home in central France, with the former sustaining severe injuries, including a mutilated hand, according to the Paris prosecutor.

Authorities managed to rescue him the next day, with his wife rescued shortly afterward.

‘Wrench attacks’ on the rise

The rising number of such physical attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders, often referred to as “wrench attacks,” has triggered alarm across France and beyond.

This Maisons-Alfort incident marked the tenth public wrench attack in France.

According to the BBC, French authorities have arrested over 20 individuals in connection with multiple abduction plots aimed at crypto entrepreneurs and their families.

This included a recent attempt in Nantes and a foiled kidnapping in Paris involving a woman and child.

These incidents have raised serious questions about the vulnerability of crypto investors, whose wealth stored in digital wallets has become an attractive target for criminals seeking high-value ransom payments.

French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has since pledged to enhance protection measures for crypto executives and their families.

However, the threat isn’t confined to France. Similar crimes have surfaced globally, in the U.S., two people were recently indicted in New York for kidnapping a tourist to access his crypto holdings.

Other wrench attacks have been reported across India, Hong Kong, Spain, and the Philippines. 

Is there a solution?

As cybercrime escalates, particularly targeting crypto users, it becomes increasingly evident that robust regulations and security frameworks are no longer optional — they are essential.

Without strong safeguards, the promise of decentralized finance could be overshadowed by a rising tide of digital exploitation, turning the crypto space into a haven for illicit activity rather than innovation.