In this news:
LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 04: Counter terrorism officers march near the scene of last night's London ... [+] Bridge terrorist attack on June 4, 2017 in London, England. Police continue to cordon off an area after responding to terrorist attacks on London Bridge and Borough Market where 6 people were killed and at least 48 injured last night. Three attackers were shot dead by armed police. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Getty Images
According to the archive maintained by security expert Jameson Lopp, co-founder and chief security officer of CASA, over 200 known physical attacks against bitcoin and crypto holders have been reported since 2014. In 2025 alone, 11 criminal incidents targeted holders, including Ledger’s Chief Executive Officer, David Balland, as reported by Coindesk January 24.
With bitcoin and crypto prices experiencing a strong bullish run in recent months, followed by market corrections, criminal interest in physically targeting crypto holders has significantly increased. Most of the reported crimes in 2025 occurred in Asia and Europe, with Thailand, Korea, and France being the most affected regions.
The most recent of these incidents occurred on February 25 in Korea, when officers from Jeju Western Police arrested four individuals in connection with the murder of a Chinese man who "went to buy virtual currency," as reported by Decrypt. This case highlights the ongoing risks associated with physical attacks against bitcoin holders.
"There's a rough correlation between the number of wrench attacks and the price of Bitcoin," Lopp explained to me in an interview. "As adoption increases, mainstream awareness increases, and as such, the number of criminally minded people who are aware of it increases. We're currently in the discovery phase where criminals are trying to determine the risks and rewards of targeting crypto asset holders for robberies," he described.
Number Go Up, So Do Physical Attacks Against Bitcoin Holders
Since 2021, these attacks have remained consistently above 20 incidents per year, with more than half of that threshold already recorded in 2025. The current spike aligns with moments when bitcoin and crypto gained mainstream attention, and it coincides with BTC surpassing the critical $100,000 mark.
.png)
