Crypto ‘wrench attacks’ exposure jumps elevenfold to $124m as France leads Europe surge
CertiK reports 52 verified physical attacks on crypto holders in H1 2026, with France accounting for most cases as home invasions surge.
Physical assaults on cryptocurrency holders — so-called “wrench attacks” — are escalating sharply in financial scale even as the number of incidents grows more gradually, according to new research from blockchain security firm CertiK. The company’s Intel3D H1 2026 report recorded 52 verified attacks worldwide in the first six months of the year, with associated financial exposure reaching $124.1 million, a rise of 1,079% compared with roughly $10.5 million over the same period in 2025.
The figures point to a shift in the nature of the threat facing crypto holders: attackers are targeting fewer, higher-value victims rather than spreading their efforts thinly. Average financial exposure per incident climbed from around $270,000 in H1 2025 to $2.39 million in H1 2026, CertiK found. The firm stressed that its totals capture recorded exposure — including stolen funds, ransom demands and frozen assets tied to documented cases — rather than confirmed criminal proceeds, describing the data as “indicative, not exhaustive” given that some victims never report attacks.
France emerges as the epicentre
Europe accounted for 39 of the 52 verified attacks, or 75% of the global total, with France alone responsible for 33 incidents — 63.5% of all cases worldwide and 84.6% of Europe’s total. The United States recorded four incidents, while Sweden and the United Kingdom each logged two.
CertiK noted that the true French total may exceed its verified dataset, citing figures from the country’s National Directorate of Judicial Police, which recorded 41 incidents between January and March alone. Some cases are classified by authorities as robbery, kidnapping, assault or extortion without an explicit crypto label, complicating efforts to track the full scale of the problem.
French prosecutors have responded with a wave of enforcement action, charging 88 suspects across 12 separate investigations by late April, according to the report. Authorities have also begun preparing prevention measures for crypto holders following a rise in kidnappings and home invasions targeting the sector.
Home invasions now the dominant method
The report identified home invasions as the fastest-growing and now most common form of attack, rising from a single recorded case in H1 2025 to 20 in H1 2026. The overall number of verified incidents rose 33.3% year-on-year, from 39 to 52, but the pace was uneven across the half: 35 attacks occurred in the first quarter, up from 22 a year earlier, before activity eased to 17 in the second quarter — matching the equivalent 2025 figure exactly.
CertiK cautioned against simply doubling the first-half total to project a full-year figure, noting that a repeat of the H1 pace would put 2026 close to 100 verified incidents but that the divergent trends between the first and second quarters make such a calculation unreliable as a forecast.
Implications for custody and personal security
The data adds to a growing body of evidence that the physical security risks facing individual crypto holders — particularly those known or suspected to control significant wallets — have become as material a concern as digital theft. For European regulators and law enforcement, France’s prosecutorial response offers an early template for how jurisdictions might address a crime category that sits awkwardly between financial regulation and conventional policing.
For institutions and high-net-worth holders, the figures reinforce arguments for custody arrangements that reduce reliance on individuals holding direct control of large sums, alongside greater discretion around public disclosure of crypto wealth.
