Key Takeaways
- Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said France saw 77 crypto-related kidnappings and extortions so far in 2026.
- High-profile 2025 hits on targets like Ledger’s David Balland fueled widespread fear across the industry.
- The Interior Ministry and Adan will launch an ambitious 3-pronged plan to track foreign crime syndicates.
French Minister Seeks to Reassure Industry
French authorities are rolling out an expanded security initiative to counter a sharp rise in violent crimes targeting cryptocurrency professionals. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said police have recorded 77 cases of kidnapping, abduction, extortion or attempted kidnapping linked to the crypto sector since January.
The figure marks a sharp increase from the 45 incidents reported in all of 2025. Speaking at an event hosted by the Association of Digital Asset Holders (Adan), Nuñez sought to reassure industry members, describing the ministry’s updated strategy as “more ambitious” than previous efforts.
“These are serious matters and your concern is legitimate,” Nuñez said, adding that emergency protocols introduced last year have proved effective. As reported by Bitcoin.com News, authorities began providing enhanced security to cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their families, aiming both to deter attackers and protect the sector.
Nuñez said law enforcement has arrested 200 people this year during or ahead of crypto‑related attacks. He cited a June 26 incident in the Somme region of northern France, where suspects were detained eight hours after an attack began. He credited the rapid response to an emergency hotline activated by the victim.
A total of 724 cryptocurrency professionals are now registered on the ministry’s immediate identification platforms, an 11% increase from last year.
Under the updated framework, authorities plan to expand intelligence sharing to better track criminal networks, many of which operate outside France. The ministry will also work with Adan to build a network of experts linking state security officials with private‑sector stakeholders.
The sector’s vulnerability was underscored last year by a string of high‑profile attacks that began in January 2025 and escalated through May in Paris. The wave included the abduction of David Balland, co‑founder of crypto hardware wallet maker Ledger.
Nuñez said those attacks stopped abruptly after the June 2025 arrest in Morocco of a Franco‑Moroccan citizen suspected of orchestrating the kidnappings.
