French police: Overseas crime bosses are the masterminds behind several recent crypto kidnapping cases in France

Jinse Finance reported that, according to French media Franceinfo, police stated in a confidential memo that from July 2023 to the end of 2025, a total of 40 cases of organized kidnapping were related to cryptocurrency-related motives. Police indicated that more than half of these cases "specifically targeted cryptocurrency holders or individuals working in the crypto industry." Kidnapping incidents related to cryptocurrency in France further accelerated in early 2026. Earlier this month, the French CEO of an exchange experienced an attempted attack in Val-de-Marne. In January, a group of young attackers in Isère tortured a 74-year-old man, mistakenly believing his son to be a cryptocurrency millionaire.