After a record 2025 for wrench attacks on cryptocurrency holders, as previously analyzed, experts forecast further increases in 2026. These physical coercions to steal digital assets are underreported amid law enforcement challenges and surging crypto adoption, warns TRM Labs.
Blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs recorded around 55 wrench attacks globally in 2025—the worst year on record—while Bitcoin developer Jameson Lopp's tracker tallied over 70. Underreporting skews official law enforcement data, said Ari Redbord, TRM's global head of policy.
Redbord predicts escalation in 2026, fueled by emboldened criminals and a growing pool of crypto investors. "We'll continue to see [the numbers] of wrench attacks go up," he told DL News, noting criminals increasingly target individuals to bypass technical safeguards. Police face resource and expertise shortages, though wider crypto adoption may drive improvements.
High-profile 2025 incidents highlight the dangers: In France, criminals kidnapped Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife for 24 hours until rescued. Court documents from a 2024 Vancouver case, revealed last year, detailed waterboarding and sexual assault of a family to steal over $1.5 million in Bitcoin.
Attacks span Brazil, Sweden, Norway, Thailand, Canada, and beyond. Coined from a webcomic depicting a 'wrench' for coercion over hacking, these rely on physical force, as security firm BlackCloak notes: "[They] don’t rely on complex hacking techniques... [but] something much simpler."
Crypto crime broadly spiked in 2025, with over $3.4 billion lost to hacks—many North Korean-linked—including a $1.5 billion Bybit Ethereum heist. In response, figures like Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin have ramped up personal security at events such as EthCC.
