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The mirages of decentralized finance had forgotten a brutal reality: the key can become a lock. On Tuesday morning, in the apparent calm of Maisons-Alfort (France), a 23-year-old man disappears in broad daylight. A commonplace scene — a couple goes shopping — turns into a hostage taking. In this quiet suburb, the line between the real and the digital fades away, giving way to a barely believable nightmare. What if you put down your phone, just for a minute, to dive into the story that all crypto holders dread?
In Brief
A 23-year-old crypto trader kidnapped and held for his Ledger wallet in Paris.
The well-informed attacker demands 5,000 euros in cash and the private key.
It is the 10th crypto attack in France this year according to Jameson Lopp, security expert.
Crypto: Predators Strike with Open Faces
Even though the alleged mastermind behind crypto-related kidnappings in France has been arrested, the criminal mechanism does not seem to want to stop. Here is another story: it is 10 a.m. on Tuesday. A young couple hits the road for some shopping. She goes down to shop, he looks for a parking place. A few minutes pass. Nothing. Silence. Then a message: an alleged professional emergency. She comes home, worried. Her phone vibrates. A video call opens. But it is not him on the screen. A stranger orders coldly: drop a Ledger key, its private key, and 5,000 euros in cash into a bag. And quickly. The man is informed, precise. He knows what he wants. It is not a request: it is an ultimatum.
According to a police source quoted in Le Parisien, “violence was used to make him talk“. The attacker was not alone: the scene is rehearsed, orchestrated. A third person retrieves the bag. The young man is released in Créteil a few hours later, with no knowledge of whether the key’s contents were emptied.
This scenario is not an exception: it is the 10th attack of this kind in France in 2025. They are called “wrench attacks”: those where no password can resist a wrench or a punch. Jameson Lopp, recognized expert and co-founder of Casa, claims to have recorded 232 cases of physical assaults against crypto holders since 2014.
France: A Worrying Surge of Attacks
This tragedy is only the tip of an increasingly worrying iceberg. Since January, 25 people, including six minors, have been indicted for kidnappings linked to crypto in the Paris region. And the profiles of the victims are changing.
After Pierre Noizat, co-founder of Paymium, whose daughter and grandson were almost kidnapped, it is now David Balland, co-founder of Ledger, who was attacked at his home. The crypto-rich no longer need to expose themselves: sometimes, a simple mention on social media is enough to attract attention.
Key data to remember:
32 crypto-related assaults recorded worldwide in 2025;
10 in France, representing a third of global cases;
25 people indicted in connection with these acts;
6 minors involved, often used as executors;
232 attacks since 2014 according to Jameson Lopp.
For Éric Larchevêque, founder of Ledger:
These issues go beyond crypto assets. They concern all entrepreneurs.
This is no longer just a digital risk, but a tangible, brutal, physical reality. The criminals no longer hide. They organize. They prowl.
Minister Bruno Retailleau had promised meetings with sector leaders to “secure the ecosystem“. Arrests have indeed been made, as shown by the latest operations reported in the press. Yet, on the ground, nothing changes. The attackers continue to prowl, methodical, indifferent to “continuous” arrests. Promises follow one another, as do signatures. But fear signs nothing. It settles in. Behind the closed doors of ministries, security is written in invisible ink, while on the streets, it is paid for in cash — sometimes at the price of a Ledger key.
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La révolution blockchain et crypto est en marche ! Et le jour où les impacts se feront ressentir sur l’économie la plus vulnérable de ce Monde, contre toute espérance, je dirai que j’y étais pour quelque chose
DISCLAIMER
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.
