The landscape of crypto-related crime is undergoing a significant and alarming transformation, marked by a sharp rise in physical coercion incidents, often termed "wrench attacks." This new wave signals a strategic shift from opportunistic digital theft to organized, professionalized criminal operations directly targeting individuals, particularly high-profile figures within the crypto industry. The recent botched home invasion targeting a Binance France executive in Paris underscores this dangerous evolution, highlighting a move towards more coordinated and intelligence-driven assaults.
The Professionalization of Physical Threats
The latest data reveals a stark increase in physical coercion, with CertiK's 2025 Wrench Attacks Report logging 72 verified incidents globally – a 75% surge over the previous year, resulting in confirmed losses exceeding $40.9 million. These figures are likely an undercount, as many victims choose not to report. Europe now accounts for over 40% of all attacks, with France emerging as the epicenter, recording 19 verified cases in 2025 alone. The nature of these attacks is also evolving, with kidnapping becoming the dominant method and physical assaults seeing a 250% increase. What's particularly concerning is the tactical shift towards targeting named executives from recognized institutional brands. Criminals are now comfortable leveraging open-source intelligence (OSINT) to identify and target individuals based on their corporate roles, perceiving them as holding valuable personal assets, privileged system access, or wealthy networks. This expands the attack surface to include family members, who are seen as "soft targets" offering equivalent leverage.
France: A Hotspot for "Wrench Attacks"
France's disproportionate vulnerability to "wrench attacks" is attributed to a convergence of five structural factors. Firstly, the country hosts a dense and visible class of crypto founders and executives, making them easily identifiable targets for basic research. Secondly, pervasive doxxing and data availability, compounded by data leaks (like the Waltio breach) and allegations of a French tax official selling sensitive investor data, turn abstract crypto users into concrete, locatable targets. Thirdly, evidence points to established, organized kidnapping infrastructure, with sophisticated gangs employing repeatable, cross-border operations. Fourthly, stringent regulatory compliance, such as the AMF's DASP/PSAN framework and the "travel rule," necessitates extensive identity data collection, creating larger databases and, consequently, more potential breach surfaces. Finally, copycat dynamics and media feedback loops amplify successful tactics, leading to a proliferation of these criminal playbooks.
Implications and the Way Forward
The immediate future points towards a scenario of "hardening without solving," where executives will adopt enhanced personal security measures and reduce their public visibility. However, attacks are expected to persist as the perceived value remains high for criminals, and the attack surface continues to grow. This trend may even prompt a re-centralization of custody, with wealthy individuals and executives shifting away from self-custody towards professional, insured institutional services to mitigate physical risks. The Binance France incident underscores that the stakes are now institutional, demanding a re-evaluation of security postures across the entire crypto industry. French regulators and law enforcement face a critical juncture: they must move beyond treating these as isolated crimes and instead address the systemic vulnerabilities created by data pipelines, compliance mandates, and public registries that make crypto holders visible, legible, and locatable at scale.
