France Cracks Down: New Bill Targets Crypto Millionaire Kidnappings Amid Wealth Boom

French lawmakers are moving to shield crypto''s nouveau riche from a dark side of success—targeted kidnappings. The proposed legislation aims to curb a rising trend where digital wealth makes headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Security meets sovereignty

With Bitcoin valuations swinging like a pendulum, France isn''t waiting for the next heist. The bill tightens protections around high-net-worth crypto holders—because nothing says ''libertarian dream'' like state intervention when fortunes flip.

Finance''s irony department

As traditional banks fret over KYC rules, crypto millionaires now need protection from... actual kidnapping. Guess decentralization doesn''t solve everything—sometimes you still need old-fashioned laws (and maybe a bodyguard).

French officials scramble to deal with daring kidnappings

The series of kidnapping attempts on crypto figures and their close ones over the past few months, including a Ledger co-founder and his partner, has spurred the French society to elaborate measures to ensure their lives and security are sufficiently protected in the face of the still-present threat.

Reacting to the criminal phenomenon, officials are now taking concrete steps to strengthen the confidentiality of the personal details of these executives and their families, while trying to maintain balance between security and transparency, the French crypto news outlet Journal du Coin noted.

One of the proposals pitched in the public space in response to calls from corporate circles has been gaining support among politicians in Paris. The idea is to remove the addresses of owners and managers of crypto firms from official trade registers.

According to the French financial daily Les Echos, the kidnappers may have used the files to identify the places of residence of their victims. On June 11, French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin announced a new decree to swiftly implement the demanded change.

New law to preserve the privacy of crypto businessmen

Also on Thursday, French lawmaker Paul Midy from the center-right Renaissance party submitted a bill designed to protect the privacy of business leaders by deleting their personal addresses from the publicly available company records.

Unlike previous proposals in the same direction, which envisaged removal of the sensitive information upon request and on a voluntary basis, this piece of legislation suggests automating the process, La Tribune explained in an article.

Following consultations with industry members, Midy wants to restrict access to the data that is currently freely accessible on online platforms aggregating information from official registers, the business weekly detailed.

The provisions concern all business officials in general, but especially those whose personal residence also serves as their corporate address, as is often the case with startups and their owners, particularly those active in the crypto market.

The law will oblige the operators of official databases, like Inpi, Infogreffe, and Insee, to share with private platforms, such as Société.com, Pappers, and SociétéInfo, only documents in which personal addresses have been redacted.

French authorities are yet to explain the sudden spike in crypto kidnappings, including that of David Balland, co-founder of the crypto wallet firm Ledger, and the attempted abduction of the daughter and grandson of crypto exchange Paymium’s CEO.

Eric Larchevêque, business partner of Balland, who had a finger cut off while in captivity, took to X to urge the government to “stop the Mexicanisation of France,” criticizing what he described as the “laxity” of French law enforcement.

Halte à la mexicanisation de la France.

Depuis plusieurs mois, les affaires sordides d’enlèvements et de tentatives d’enlèvement se multiplient. En plein jour. En plein Paris. Sous les yeux de tous.

Ce matin encore, une mère de famille de 34 ans, accompagnée de son enfant de…

— Eric Larchevêque (@EricLarch) May 13, 2025

So far, 25 individuals have been charged in connection with the cases in France, and an alleged mastermind was arrested in Morocco, but he is yet to be extradited. This week, France 24 reported that the French police have detained more people over last month’s kidnapping for ransom of a crypto entrepreneur’s father.

Prompted by the spate of brazen attacks, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau summoned crypto bosses in mid-May to discuss their security, emphasizing on the need for taking joint measures to protect them and their families. He also vowed to “find the perpetrators wherever they may be.”

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