french cryptocurrency

France on Wednesday faced calls to bolster security for cryptocurrency firms, after armed men attempted to snatch the daughter and grandson of the Paymium platform from a Paris street and a spate of similar violent incidents. The woman is the daughter of the CEO and co-founder of Paymium, a french cryptocurrency exchange platform.

french cryptocurrency boss Pierre Noizat on Friday praised his "heroic" son-in-law and a neighbour wielding a fire extinguisher for preventing the kidnap attempt of his pregnant daughter and young grandson. Noizat praised his "heroic" son-in-law as well as the man who used a red fire extinguisher against the attackers, saying he was "exemplary."

A wave of kidnappings and extortion attempts targeting cryptocurrency figures and their families is escalating across France and other European nations. Organized criminal groups are employing a chilling tactic, physically coercing victims to surrender their digital assets. Authorities are investigating these attacks, while the crypto industry emphasizes the traceability of cryptocurrency transactions to deter criminals.

FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest of John Daghita, accused of stealing over $46 million in cryptocurrency from US Marshals Service wallets. Daghita was apprehended in Saint Martin following a joint operation with French authorities.

French police arrested 10 suspects in the kidnapping and torture of Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife. Abducted from their home in Méreau, they were separated and held captive as kidnappers demanded a cryptocurrency ransom. The Gendarmerie’s elite GIGN unit rescued the couple after a 48-hour operation. Balland was hospitalized for injuries, and most of the ransom was recovered. The suspects, aged 20-40, face possible life imprisonment.

In a dramatic rescue, French police freed the kidnapped father of a wealthy crypto entrepreneur from a house south of Paris. The victim, held for ransom, was found injured, reportedly with a severed finger. Five suspects are in custody, facing severe charges.

In Paris, the pregnant daughter of a crypto executive and her child were targeted in a kidnapping attempt. Masked assailants attacked, but locals intervened, thwarting the abduction. The victims sustained minor injuries, and the attackers fled in a fake delivery van.

France approves Coinbase as a VASP, allowing the US-based cryptocurrency exchange to offer digital currency services in the country. Coinbase is now registered with the French financial markets regulator, Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF). This approval expands Coinbase's services in the European market. The company can now provide custody of digital assets, buy or sell digital assets in legal tender, trade digital assets against other digital assets, and operate a digital asset trading platform in France.

Twenty-five people, including six minors, were charged in Paris over a spate of kidnappings and attempted abductions of top figures in France's cryptocurrency world, prosecutors said on Saturday. Prosecutors said the probe also covers "other unsuccessful plans", including an initial failed attempt on the same targets the day before, and a disrupted operation near the western city of Nantes on Monday.

Red Bull have signed a multi-year partnership with cryptocurrency exchange Bybit in what the Formula One team said was the largest annual crypto tie-up in international sport so far. The Bybit deal comes after Red Bull unveiled software giant Oracle as their title sponsor last week in a deal sources told Reuters was worth $300 million over five years.

Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi's transfer to French club Paris St Germain included a payment in cryptocurrency fan tokens, a source close to the matter said, providing another big name endorsement for new digital assets.

Cryptocurrencies have attracted about $30 billion in 2021, more than in all previous years combined

French industrial giant Schneider Electric is grappling with a cyberattack by a new ransomware group dubbed Hellcat. The group, demanding a curious ransom of $125,000 worth of baguettes, claims to have pilfered 40GB of sensitive data, including employee and customer information.

Tech entrepreneur Pavel Durov, known for creating VKontakte and Telegram, was arrested in Paris over alleged criminal activities related to Telegram. His legal troubles include accusations of fraud, drug trafficking, and promoting terrorism. Durov's arrest and Telegram's controversial role in global conflicts, such as Russia's war against Ukraine, have raised significant concerns.

Kylian Mbappe's X account got hacked while he was in Spain, leading to posts promoting the cryptocurrency '$MBAPPE' and making controversial claims about Manchester United, Manchester City, Tottenham, and the Ronaldo-Messi rivalry. Although the tweets were quickly deleted, they caused significant commotion within the football community.

Interpol, at India's request, has issued a Silver notice to monitor Shubham Shokeen, a former French embassy officer involved in visa fraud, to track illicit assets globally. Shokeen allegedly collected illegal payments for Schengen visas and acquired Dubai properties with the proceeds. India has also secured a Silver notice against Amit Madanlal Lakhanpal for cryptocurrency fraud.

The official Twitter accounts of Apple, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and others were hijacked on Wednesday by scammers trying to dupe people into sending cryptocurrency bitcoin, in a massive hack. The list of accounts commandeered simultaneously grew rapidly to include Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Uber, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, bitcoin specialty firms and many others.

Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi has launched his own collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), crypto art that was created with his image by digital designer BossLogic and will go on sale on Friday.

Russian-born tech entrepreneur Pavel Durov has founded wildly popular social networks, cryptocurrencies, amassed a multi-billion-dollar fortune and locked horns with authorities, in Russia and around the world. Despite boasting a fortune estimated by Forbes magazine at $15.5 billion, Durov says his goal in life was never to become rich but "free".

Stefanos Tsitsipas is one of the headline acts in tennis but, for some, simply saying his name is a challenge and he landed on a list of the most mispronounced words of 2021 on Tuesday.

British artist Sacha Jafri's "Journey of Humanity" is split into 70 framed sections spanning 1,595.76 square metres (17,176 sq ft) -- equivalent to nearly four basketball courts.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov was arrested at a Paris airport, coinciding with the mysterious disappearance of 24-year-old streamer Juli Vavilova, who was last seen with him. This unfolding story involves French investigations into serious allegations against Durov, sparking speculation about her role in his capture and their relationship.