Harrowing kidnapping attempt targeting the family of crypto exchange CEO highlights rising offline threats facing entrepreneurs
A dramatic daylight kidnapping attempt in Paris was thwarted on May 13, when the daughter of Pierre Noizat—co-founder and CEO of French crypto exchange Paymium—fought off three masked assailants attempting to abduct her and her young son.
The attack took place in Paris’ 11th district. Noizat’s daughter, accompanied by a male partner, was walking with her son when the group was ambushed by three masked men who tried to force the mother and child into a waiting van. The male partner was assaulted while trying to intervene.
Despite the chaos, Noizat’s daughter reportedly resisted fiercely. In a struggle with one of the attackers, she managed to wrest away a firearm and throw it out of reach. The commotion drew the attention of nearby pedestrians, whose intervention forced the kidnappers to flee. The abandoned van was later recovered nearby.
All three victims sustained injuries and were hospitalized.
Police investigation underway
The French Ministry of the Interior’s specialized police unit, the Brigade for the Suppression of Banditry, has taken over the investigation. Local news outlet Le Parisien described the event as a “botched abduction” and one of the most audacious crypto-linked assaults in recent months.
Crypto industry leaders raise alarm
Michael Englander, CEO of Polish crypto exchange Plasbit, reacted strongly to the news, warning peers in the industry: If you’re in crypto and still flaunting it online, you’re not just stupid, you’re putting your family in danger,” he posted on X. Crypto lawyer Sasha Hodder echoed the concerns, stating that attacks are no longer limited to digital exploits: Crypto theft is evolving. It’s not just social engineering or SIM swaps anymore.
Offline threats on the rise
The Paris attack is just one of several recent high-profile incidents. Earlier this month, Las Vegas police reported that three teenagers had kidnapped a man returning from a crypto event and stole $4 million worth of cryptocurrencies and NFTs at gunpoint. On May 3, Paris police rescued the father of another crypto entrepreneur who had been held hostage for several days as part of a €7 million ($7.8 million) extortion plot.
In January, David Balland, co-founder of crypto hardware wallet firm Ledger, was abducted from his home in central France and held captive for over 24 hours before a police rescue operation secured his release. Jameson Lopp, co-founder of Casa, maintains a GitHub list of such “offline crypto robberies,” documenting 22 cases of in-person thefts so far this year.
A 2023 University of Cambridge study noted that “wrench attacks”—physical assaults to extract crypto keys—are vastly underreported, driven by victims’ fears of retribution and the stigma around personal security lapses. The attackers, it found, range from criminal networks to acquaintances and even family members.
