Chainalysis CEO offers a clue into the recent spate of Paris crypto attacks

Some transgression organizations are yet to person the memo — crypto is traceable — and could explicate the caller drawstring of crypto-related kidnappings, says Chainalysis CEO Jonathan Levin. 

Law enforcement has been progressively palmy astatine tracing stolen funds and crypto ransom payments, resulting successful a “lot of arrests,” Levin said during the 2025 Consensus crypto conference, covered by Cointelegraph.

“For immoderate reason, determination is simply a cognition that’s retired determination that crypto is an plus that is untraceable, and that truly lends itself to criminals acting successful a definite way,” helium said. 

“Apparently, the cognize that crypto is not untraceable hasn't been received by immoderate of the organized transgression groups that are really perpetrating these attacks, and immoderate of them are concentrated in, you know, France, but not exclusively.” 

Jonathan Levin (left) says criminals targeting the crypto manufacture should cognize that the funds are traceable and instrumentality enforcement tin way them. Source: Cointelegraph

There person been 2 superior crypto-related attacks successful Paris truthful acold this month. On May 13, 3 assailants attempted to kidnap the girl and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the co-founder and CEO of French crypto speech Paymium. 

Earlier successful the month, connected May 3, Paris constabulary freed the begetter of a crypto entrepreneur who was held for respective days arsenic portion of a 7 cardinal euro ($7.8 million) kidnapping plot. The attacks person prompted France’s interior minister to conscionable with crypto professionals and code rising information concerns. 

Last year, blockchain researcher ZachXBT sounded the alarm successful October that he’d been receiving messages from aggregate victims of crypto home penetration thefts successful Western Europe astatine a overmuch higher complaint than different regions.

“The connection needs to get retired determination that these payments are traceable and that these units wrong the instrumentality enforcement agencies person really been precise palmy astatine holding immoderate of those radical to relationship successful those kidnapping cases,” Levin said.

“And adjacent if it’s not the radical that are kidnapping those people, but really going upstream to the organized transgression groups that are orchestrating these,” helium added.

Online streamer Amouranth was the victim of a location invasion successful March 2025 erstwhile respective equipped assailants held her astatine gunpoint and demanded the keys to her crypto wallet, four suspects were charged successful transportation with the incidental and arrested by instrumentality enforcement.

Crypto kidnapping “not specified a profitable business”

Levin says helium hopes organized transgression takes a connection from crypto robbers being arrested, specifically, that it’s “not specified a profitable concern to beryllium in,” and successful immoderate instances, the ransom payments mightiness adjacent beryllium recoverable.

“There is the quality to perchance retrieve immoderate of those payments arsenic well. I deliberation that successful general, the extremity present is not needfully the betterment of the money, but it’s holding those radical to account,” helium said.

However, contempt instrumentality enforcement having immoderate occurrence successful tracking down criminals targeting the crypto industry, Levin says the spate of offline robberies is inactive a “bleak” situation, and the manufacture should beryllium taking other steps to stifle theft arsenic well. 

“People request to beryllium precise cautious astir what accusation is shared astir them online,” helium said.

Related: Teens kidnap Las Vegas antheral astatine gunpoint, stealing $4M successful crypto

This year, determination person been 22 recorded incidents of in-person crypto-related theft compared to 28 successful 2024, according to a GitHub database created by cypherpunk and co-founder of self-custodial steadfast Casa, Jameson Lopp.

However, the fig could beryllium higher. A University of Cambridge survey released successful September past year found these alleged “wrench attacks” are often underreported owed to revictimization fears. 

Additional reporting by Vince Quill.

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