Crypto Wrench Attacks Top $30M as France Leads Surge

Attacks in France increased from about 1.9 per month in 2025 to roughly 4.6 per month during the first half of 2026.

French authorities responded with a major organized-crime crackdown that produced around 200 arrests, 88 indictments and 75 suspects placed in pretrial detention by mid-year, the government said.

Home invasions are becoming more common. They accounted for just 14% of attacks in 2025, rising to 37% through mid-2026. Kidnappings represented roughly 52% of documented incidents this year, according to Chainalysis.

Attackers are increasingly targeting family members. By early 2026, relatives or acquaintances were involved in roughly 25% to 30% of cases, compared with almost none in 2021. In France, more than 40% of incidents reportedly targeted someone connected to the holder rather than the holder directly.

Chainalysis categorized attackers by how they move stolen funds. Less sophisticated criminals often transfer crypto directly to centralized exchanges, giving exchanges and law enforcement a chance to freeze funds and identify suspects. More experienced groups use decentralized exchanges and DeFi services to obscure transaction trails. The most sophisticated attackers are linked to wider criminal networks and professional laundering operations. Some stolen funds have ultimately interacted with services associated with organized crime and money laundering networks, Chainalysis said.

The shift toward physical threats reflects the growing value of crypto holdings and the difficulty of stealing large amounts through hacks alone. Protecting personal data and maintaining operational security may become as important as safeguarding private keys, the firm said.