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Forbes
25-06-2025
- Forbes
Crypto In France Is Starting To Feel Like An Episode Of Money Heist
France is experiencing more crypto kidnapping that any other country in the world As crypto leaders descend on Cannes next week for ETHCC—the Ethereum Community Conference—there's a buzz in the air. Ideas are flowing, wallets are syncing, and the promise of decentralized finance feels more real than ever. But there's another undercurrent in France that attendees would be wise to acknowledge: the sharp rise in violent cryptocurrency-related crime. According to the May 2025 Global Guardian Risk Barometer, France currently leads the world in crypto-related extortion and kidnapping cases. Five out of 21 reported global incidents in just the first five months of this year occurred in France—more than any other country. Just last month, an attempted kidnapping targeted the daughter of Pierre Noizat, CEO of Paymium, a French crypto exchange. The attack—caught on camera in broad daylight in Paris—was only thwarted thanks to the quick action of her partner and alert bystanders. The incident sent shockwaves through the French Web3 scene and drew media attention to a disturbing trend: public crypto figures are being hunted like characters from a suspense series. And the Noizat case wasn't an isolated event. In January, Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife were kidnapped in Vierzon, France. The attackers severed one of Balland's fingers and demanded a crypto ransom, which was partially paid in Tether before French special forces rescued the couple. It was later confirmed that French police had tracked the ransom trail and freed the victim from a trunk where he'd been held for 58 hours. Five individuals were arrested during the raid, including two with previous convictions for crypto-targeted crimes. In June 2025, just outside Paris, a 23-year-old was lured into a fake meeting and held until their partner handed over a Ledger hardware wallet and €5,000 in cash. The attackers had tracked the individual through social media and crypto community posts. This kind of 'wrench attack' (where physical force is used to extract private keys) is increasingly targeting everyday investors, not just billionaires. Why France Is Home Of So Many Crypto Attacks? The answer lies at the intersection of crypto's growing visibility and France's unique position as a Web3-friendly nation. France has taken a proactive stance on digital assets—from regulatory clarity to high-profile conferences like ETHCC. But with innovation comes exposure. Several factors make France particularly vulnerable: The investigation into the Noizat attack confirmed that some French crypto CEOs are now exploring hiring private security or even applying for permits to carry arms—reflecting just how real the threat has become in what should be a bastion of innovation. What ETHCC Attendees Should Know To Protect Their Crypto Investments With thousands of developers, investors, and builders gathering in Cannes next week for ETHcc, operational security (opsec) is no longer optional. Cannes, France will be home of the ETHcc conference. Whether you're demoing a new zk-rollup or pitching a DAO-backed app, here are a few practical tips: As one ETH investor put it in a private Telegram group: 'You can't decentralize kidnapping.' The Crypto Industry's Blind Spot Crypto has revolutionized finance—but it's also introduced new vulnerabilities. Unlike traditional banking, there are no fraud alerts, no reversible charges, and often no legal recourse once funds are gone. Cryptocurrency is attracting many criminals (Photo Illustration) While Web3 celebrates decentralization, it has yet to fully confront its exposure to real-world crime. Until more robust safety measures are implemented—from platform-level withdrawal protections to law enforcement crypto training—the responsibility will remain with individuals to protect themselves. This is particularly urgent in France, where authorities are still playing catch-up. That said, the recent wave of arrests—over 20 suspects charged in coordinated crypto kidnapping rings—shows law enforcement is now starting to respond. But the question remains: are they moving fast enough? Crypto Is Only Gaining More Importance France has emerged as a leader in crypto innovation. But it's also becoming the epicenter of a new kind of threat—one that blends the digital with the deeply physical. As we gather this week to build the future of finance, we should also be building a culture of safety. ETHCC may be a celebration of decentralization and empowerment—but let's not forget: in the wrong hands, decentralization without protection is just vulnerability. Did you enjoy this story on crypto potential thefts and kidnapping in France? Don't miss my next one: Use the blue follow button at the top of the article near my byline to follow more of my work.
Forbes
24-06-2025
- Forbes
Crypto Wealth Paints A Target. The Security Playbook Is Adapting
BERLIN, GERMANY - JANUARY 29: Symbolic photo for data protection, reflection of Bitcoins, an online ... More payment system, in a computer hard drive on January 29, 2015 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images) The rise of crypto wealth has brought with it an unsettling reality: physical danger. In recent months, a wave of assaults, kidnappings, and extortion attempts has shaken the crypto elite, forcing many to rethink the true cost of self-custody and the limits of their current security setups. In May 2025, the escalation became painfully clear. In Paris, the father of a crypto entrepreneur was abducted while walking his dog. Kidnappers severed his finger and sent ransom videos to his son. He was rescued by French police, who arrested several suspects. Days later, attackers targeted the daughter and grandson of Paymium CEO Pierre Noizat in a failed daylight kidnapping, also in Paris. In New York, an Italian man was captured and tortured for 17 days for his bitcoin fortune before escaping. His captors were arrested shortly after. These are not isolated cases. In January, Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife were taken hostage at their home in Vierzon, France. In 2024, authorities arrested six men in Connecticut after forcing a couple from their car in a plot allegedly tied to the couple's son, who was accused of stealing over $240 million in bitcoin. The same year, a New York judge sentenced Remy Ra St. Felix to 47 years in prison for leading a violent home invasion ring that specifically targeted crypto holders. Crypto crime has spilled offline. It's no longer just about hacks; it's home invasions, kidnappings, and coercion. Crypto holders must now redefine what security truly means. Private Keys, Public Threats The risk stems not only from crypto's libertarian aura—it's baked into the architecture. Private keys—alphanumeric strings that grant access to crypto wallets—are stored by crypto holders themselves, beyond the reach of banks, courts, or account freezes. A single 24-word seed phrase may control billions of dollars, and once compromised, there's no reversing the damage. This creates a high-stakes vulnerability. As crypto holders become increasingly savvy online, criminals start resorting to physical attacks. Social media only amplifies the risk. Some crypto advocates are prominent by choice; others inadvertently advertise their wealth. Either way, they become visible, traceable, and ultimately targetable. Data leaks only compound the exposure. Last month, Coinbase disclosed a breach affecting under 1% of its active users. The incident involved sensitive data, including full names, home addresses, government-issued IDs, and masked financial details. The breach was reportedly caused by bribed support staff, underscoring that internal threats are often as dangerous as external hacks. Making matters worse, careless regulatory approaches often exacerbate the risk. Government regulations, while well-intentioned, increasingly require centralized collection of wallet addresses and user identities. Rules like the FATF's 'travel rule' and Europe's Transfer of Funds Regulation mandate exchanges to store and transmit identity-linked transaction data, even for withdrawals to self-hosted wallets. The U.S. has proposed similar measures through FinCEN. These policies expose users to the same doxxing vulnerabilities common in traditional database breaches, but without the safety net of TradFi. Once a crypto address is tied to a real-world identity and leaked, it becomes a permanent map of a user's financial history—traceable, targetable, and irreversible. The scale of security spending among crypto executives illustrates just how seriously the risk is being taken. According to Bloomberg, Coinbase has spent $6.2 million on personal security for CEO Brian Armstrong in 2024. This is more than JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Nvidia spent on their top executives combined. Circle allocated $800,000 to protect CEO Jeremy Allaire. Robinhood spent $1.6 million to secure Vlad Tenev. Most crypto users, however, cannot afford personal bodyguards or private intelligence teams. Many turn to custodial solutions—ETFs, centralized exchanges, or third-party vaults. These offer an escape from the burden of personal key management, but at the cost of reintroducing trusted intermediaries—which defies the very idea of trustless, independent money. Real-World Security For Crypto Holders For those committed to self-custody, a new playbook is emerging. Speaking at the Bitcoin Investor event in New York, co-founder of bitcoin security service provider Casa, Jameson Lopp, outlined the core principles of self-custody in a world where physical threats to crypto holders are on the rise. The solution, according to Lopp, is to decentralize control through multi-signature wallets, which require multiple keys to authorize a transaction. Ideally, those keys are distributed across different geographic locations, devices, and operational protocols. Another essential principle is time. In coercive attacks—such as home invasions or kidnappings—attackers typically seek speed. Timelocks—programmed delays that prevent immediate asset transfers—can buy critical minutes or hours. That said, multisig isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. It can involve trusted collaborators or be configured for a single individual with keys spread across different environments. The strength of a self-custody setup lies in diversity across hardware, software, physical conditions, and even resilience to natural disasters. Lopp also stressed that strong privacy is the foundation of both personal and asset security. Public exposure of crypto holdings—whether through social media or leaked data—dramatically increases the likelihood of being targeted. In his view, robust security is multi-layered. Each added layer—whether it's location separation, transaction delay, or operational secrecy—compounds the difficulty for potential attackers. Beyond multisig and timelocks, several other tools can help reduce the risks of real-world threats. Some hardware wallets, like Coldcard and Trezor, support hidden wallets protected by a passphrase, providing plausible deniability under coercion. Others use decoy wallets funded with small amounts, designed to appease attackers without giving up access to the primary stash. Smart contract wallets like Safe (formerly Gnosis Safe) and Argent offer social recovery mechanisms, enabling trusted contacts to help restore access in the event of loss or compromise. For high-risk profiles, emergency vault sweep systems—automated transactions that trigger if the owner fails to check in—can serve as a final layer of protection. Crypto security is no longer just about digital hygiene. What started with passwords and seed phrases must now account for physical risks, operational discipline, and situational awareness. As crypto wealth grows, so does the need for a security mindset that matches its scale and stakes.
Local France
21-06-2025
- Local France
France arrests five over cryptocurrency kidnapping
In recent months France has seen several kidnappings and attempted abductions targeting cryptocurrency businesspeople and their families, and authorities have been under huge pressure to act. On December 31, 2024, five armed people attacked a man and a woman in their home in the eastern town of Saint-Genis-Pouilly near the Swiss border. In exchange for their release, the attackers demanded a ransom from their son, an influencer living in Dubai, prosecutors said at the time. When they did not receive the ransom, they abducted the father, who was found a few hours later in the boot of a car in the department of Sarthe nearly 700 kilometres (435 miles) away. The 56-year-old man had been "assaulted, doused with petrol and transported in the boot of a car", prosecutor Karine Malara said in a statement. His wife was found tied up at her home in Saint-Genis-Pouilly. Five people were arrested on Tuesday as part of a criminal investigation. They were taken into custody on Friday on charges including kidnapping, armed robbery and aggravated assault, Malara said. The suspects are four adults aged 18 to 22 and a 17-year-old minor. Arrests The prosecutors have not released the name of the cryptocurrency entrepreneur, saying only that his "success was well known to the general public". Three of the adults in pre-trial detention have extensive criminal records, including for violence, theft, drug and currency trafficking, and possession of weapons. The minor has a record for aggravated theft. Advertisement In May, 25 people, including six minors, were charged over several kidnappings and attempted abductions of cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their family members. The most high-profile incident under investigation is that of a kidnapping attempt targeting the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the chief executive officer of crypto firm Paymium. READ ALSO: Suspects charged in French crypto abduction cases The abduction bid was carried out in broad daylight in Paris in May. In June, five men were arrested in northern France, suspected of planning the kidnapping of a young man and his mother. They allegedly intended to cut off one of the woman's fingers to obtain a ransom from the son, who owned cryptocurrencies. Malara said that no link had so far been established between this week's arrests and the other kidnapping cases.
New Straits Times
21-06-2025
- New Straits Times
France arrests five over cryptocurrency kidnapping
LYON: French authorities have arrested five people on charges of kidnapping the father of an influencer and cryptocurrency entrepreneur, prosecutors said on Saturday. In recent months, France has seen several kidnappings and attempted abductions targeting cryptocurrency businesspeople and their families, and authorities have been under intense pressure to act. On Dec 31, 2024, five armed individuals attacked a man and a woman in their home in the eastern town of Saint-Genis-Pouilly near the Swiss border. In exchange for their release, the attackers demanded a ransom from their son, an influencer living in Dubai, prosecutors said at the time. When they did not receive the ransom, they abducted the father, who was found a few hours later in the boot of a car in the department of Sarthe, nearly 700 kilometres (435 miles) away. The 56-year-old man had been "assaulted, doused with petrol and transported in the boot of a car", prosecutor Karine Malara said in a statement. His wife was found tied up at her home in Saint-Genis-Pouilly. Five individuals were arrested on Tuesday as part of a criminal investigation. They were taken into custody on Friday on charges including kidnapping, armed robbery, and aggravated assault, Malara said. The suspects are four adults aged 18 to 22 and a 17-year-old minor. Prosecutors have not released the name of the cryptocurrency entrepreneur, stating only that his "success was well known to the general public". Three of the adults in pre-trial detention have extensive criminal records, including for violence, theft, drug and currency trafficking, and possession of weapons. The minor has a record for aggravated theft. In May, 25 people — including six minors — were charged in connection with several kidnappings and attempted abductions of cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their family members. The most high-profile incident under investigation is that of a kidnapping attempt targeting the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the chief executive officer of crypto firm Paymium. The abduction attempt was carried out in broad daylight in Paris in May. In June, five men were arrested in northern France, suspected of planning the kidnapping of a young man and his mother. They allegedly intended to cut off one of the woman's fingers to obtain a ransom from the son, who owned cryptocurrencies. Malara said that no link had so far been established between this week's arrests and the other kidnapping cases.
LeMonde
21-06-2025
- LeMonde
Five arrested over cryptocurrency kidnapping in France
French authorities have arrested five people on charges of kidnapping the father of an influencer and cryptocurrency entrepreneur, prosecutors said on Saturday, June 21. In recent months, France has seen several kidnappings and attempted abductions targeting cryptocurrency businesspeople and their families, and authorities have been under huge pressure to act. On December 31, 2024, five armed people attacked a man and a woman in their home in the eastern town of Saint-Genis-Pouilly near the Swiss border. In exchange for their release, the attackers demanded a ransom from their son, an influencer living in Dubai, prosecutors said at the time. When they did not receive the ransom, they abducted the father, who was found a few hours later in the boot of a car in the department of Sarthe, nearly 700 kilometres away. The 56-year-old man had been "assaulted, doused with petrol and transported in the boot of a car," prosecutor Karine Malara said in a statement. His wife was found tied up at her home in Saint-Genis-Pouilly. Five people were arrested on Tuesday as part of a criminal investigation. They were taken into custody on Friday on charges including kidnapping, armed robbery and aggravated assault, Malara said. The suspects are four adults aged 18 to 22 and a 17-year-old minor. Several recent cases The prosecutors have not released the name of the cryptocurrency entrepreneur, saying only that his "success was well known to the general public." Three of the adults in pre-trial detention have extensive criminal records, including for violence, theft, drug and currency trafficking, and possession of weapons. The minor has a record for aggravated theft. In May, 25 people, including six minors, were charged over several kidnappings and attempted abductions of cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their family members. The most high-profile incident under investigation is that of a kidnapping attempt targeting the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the chief executive officer of crypto firm Paymium. The abduction bid was carried out in broad daylight in Paris in May. In June, five men were arrested in northern France, suspected of planning the kidnapping of a young man and his mother. They allegedly intended to cut off one of the woman's fingers to obtain a ransom from the son, who owned cryptocurrencies. Malara said that no link had so far been established between this week's arrests and the other kidnapping cases.
