French minister reveals 77 cases of virtual currency-related kidnappings, says new security plan will be drawn up

French authorities have announced tougher anti-crime measures after 77 crypto-related kidnappings and extortion cases.

France has recorded 77 crypto-related incidents involving kidnapping, extortion or attempted kidnapping since the beginning of this year.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said in a press conference with the Association of Digital Asset Owners (ADAN) on June 30 that the number is a significant increase from the 45 cases reported in 2025.

France announces tougher security plan

Nunez acknowledged the concerns in the industry, called the incident serious, but said emergency safety measures put in place a year ago were paying off. He revealed that around 200 people were arrested after or before the attacks occurred during the same period.

As a recent example, the minister said a suspect in connection with an incident in the Somme region last Friday was arrested within eight hours. He added that the victim had activated a dedicated emergency hotline set up for members of the cryptocurrency sector.

Nunez said 724 people in the industry are currently registered on the government’s instant identification platform, an 11% increase in participation. Full details of the government’s next steps are not yet clear, but the minister said all departments at the Home Office have developed a new security strategy that is “more ambitious” than previous efforts.

The plan is built around three priorities. The first focuses on increasing intelligence sharing. Núñez stressed that strengthening intelligence gathering on criminal networks is particularly important, as those leading these crimes may be based outside France. The second priority aims to deepen cooperation with ADAN by building a network of experts that connects crypto industry participants with relevant government officials.

The third priority aims to improve operational coordination between law enforcement agencies to more effectively thwart criminal groups, as well as strengthen cooperation with countries believed to be organizing attacks.

The minister said cooperation with foreign authorities remains essential. As an example, he cited the arrest of a French-Moroccan man in Morocco in June 2025 on suspicion of ordering a series of kidnappings targeting the cryptocurrency industry. One of the victims was Ledger co-founder David Balland. Nunez said the arrest brought the attack to an abrupt end.

Wrench attack continues

Similar attacks continue to occur elsewhere. In March, a cryptocurrency holder known by the pseudonym “Sirituna” said he was forced by armed assailants to hand over approximately $24 million in digital assets during a violent robbery. According to the victim, the attackers used weapons and threatened to kidnap and sexually assault her if she did not take control of her cryptocurrency holdings.

Blockchain investigators then tracked the stolen funds as they moved between multiple networks and were converted into privacy coins to make them difficult to trace.