Key Takeaways:
France recorded 77 crypto-related kidnapping and extortion cases in the first half of 2026, nearly double the total for all of last year.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed 77 crypto-linked kidnapping, extortion or attempted extortion incidents in the first half of 2026, up from 45 in all of 2025, as physical attacks on crypto holders escalate across Europe.
"These are serious matters, and your concern is legitimate," Nuñez told the Association for the Development of Digital Assets (ADAN) on Tuesday, according to local outlet BFM Business.
France has become the epicenter of so-called wrench attacks, where criminals use physical violence to coerce victims into handing over crypto. Approximately 11% of French people — about 7.3 million — own cryptocurrencies, according to ADAN. Ransom demands typically range from 700,000 euros to over $1 million in Bitcoin, with victims including executives from Ledger, Binance France, The Sandbox and Paymium.
Nuñez promised a "more ambitious" three-part plan to reinforce security, including stronger intelligence-sharing with foreign authorities, a deeper partnership with ADAN and better operational coordination between security services. The government earlier this year launched a dedicated prevention platform and rapid-alert system that has attracted 724 sign-ups and contributed to 200 arrests so far.
Data breaches fuel real-world violence
Blockchain security firm CertiK reported in May that wrench attacks globally rose 41 percent in the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, with most attacks concentrated in Europe. The firm identified France as the epicenter due to the presence of flagship industry companies and their executives, a "culture of flexing and voluntary doxxing" in the community, and exposure from multiple sensitive data leaks.
Ledger co-founder David Balland was kidnapped and held for ransom along with his partner in January 2025 before being rescued by police. The hardware wallet maker suffered one of the industry's most damaging data breaches in 2020, when its customer database was hacked, leaking more than 270,000 personal records and triggering a wave of phishing and wrench attacks that continue today.
"France ranks among the most targeted countries in the world for this type of breach," CertiK said.
Investigations have revealed that some criminal networks recruit adolescents through social media to carry out the physical crimes. By April 2026, police had made arrests across 12 separate investigations, charging 88 individuals. A separate sweep in mid-2025 netted 25 people, with some schemes routing stolen funds internationally through locations including Venezuela.
What's at stake for the crypto sector
The surge in physical attacks poses a structural risk to France's crypto industry, which hosts major companies including Ledger, Binance France and The Sandbox. French crypto firms are allocating more resources toward physical security measures and protective infrastructure for executives, according to industry sources.
Crypto wealth is uniquely vulnerable to physical extraction because transactions are irreversible and can be executed in minutes, unlike a bank wire that can be frozen or reversed. The trend may also trigger copycat regulatory responses across Europe, potentially increasing operational costs for crypto businesses in the region.
Nuñez said one recent attacker was arrested within eight hours after the victim used the emergency identification hotline, highlighting the system's potential. The government's next steps include deeper intelligence-sharing to target criminal networks often based abroad.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
