From CoinDesk · By Jamie Crawley, AI Boost
A cryptocurrency trader in the U.K. said armed intruders held him at knifepoint and forced him to transfer about $760,000 in digital assets, though police have not confirmed the account.
Such robberies, known as “wrench attacks,” use violence or threats to force cryptocurrency holders to surrender their assets, bypassing digital security measures.
Chainalysis estimated that criminals stole more than $30 million through violent attacks in the first half of 2026, with home invasions accounting for 37% of recorded cases.
A cryptocurrency trader in the U.K. claimed to have had almost $800,000 of crypto stolen after armed intruders broke into his home and forced him to transfer digital assets to a specific wallet, highlighting a threat to investors that neither self-custody nor encryption can prevent.
The unidentified trader, pseudonymously “realist” on X, said attackers held him at knifepoint, destroyed his phone and forced transfers of approximately $40,000 from a hot wallet and $720,000 from his Ledger wallet.
The trader shared a Solana wallet address on blockchain explorer Solscan to substantiate his account, though there has yet been no corresponding confirmation from the police or other authorities regarding the incident.
“If you live in the U.K. and do crypto get the f**k out,” he posted.
The incident follows recent reports of a similar U.K. robbery last December, where masked attackers beat a cryptocurrency investor with hammers and threatened to kill his pregnant wife unless he transferred hundreds of thousands of pounds in crypto.
Such crimes, commonly called “wrench attacks,” involve physical violence or threats to compel crypto holders to surrender their assets.
Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimates criminals stole more than $30 million through violent attacks in the first half of 2026. Home invasions accounted for 37% of recorded incidents, up from 14% a year earlier.
France emerged as a hotspot for wrench attacks, with Chainalysis documenting at least 30 recorded incidents in the first half of this year.
Blockchain security firm Certik identified 52 verified attacks globally during that period, of which 33 were in France.
The figures suggest physical coercion is becoming an increasingly significant concern alongside wholly digital threats such as hacks, phishing and smart-contract exploits.
The implications for investors extend beyond protecting private keys to keeping holdings confidential, limiting public disclosures about one’s trading activity and separating readily available funds from long-term reserves. However, no individual technical safeguards can eliminate the threat of violence.