France records 90 cryptocurrency-related violent crimes within seven months, becoming a global hotspot for physical attacks.

On October 9, Cointelegraph cited data from the French Ministry of the Interior indicating that between January and mid-August 2026, France has recorded 90 cases of kidnapping, extortion, and violent theft involving cryptocurrency, averaging one incident every 2.5 days. Data from security firm Gart.io shows that France logged 73 physical attack incidents targeting crypto users this year, surpassing both the United States and the United Kingdom to take the global top spot.

A research director at Chainalysis stated that the surge in attacks may be directly linked to a recent major personal data breach involving the French tax authority and crypto tax firm Waltio, which led to the exposure of holders' addresses and asset information; meanwhile, over 40% of the cases in France have specifically targeted the relatives and acquaintances of holders. Currently, French authorities have classified these incidents as organized crime, with specialized agencies launching coordinated investigations.