WonderFi CEO Kidnapped and Ransomed for $1 Million

Dean Skurka, the CEO of Canadian cryptocurrency firm WonderFi, was kidnapped and later released after a ransom of $1 million was paid, according to local media.

The incident occurred in downtown Toronto on November 6 around 6:00 PM. Unknown assailants forced the businessman into a car and demanded money.

Skurka transferred $1 million to the perpetrators. He was later found unharmed in Centennial Park in the Etobicoke district.

In comments to the media, the victim stated that he is safe.

“Funds and customer data were not affected by this incident,” Skurka added.

Further details are not being disclosed due to the ongoing investigation.

According to internal statistics, in November 2023, WonderFi accounted for nearly half of all regulated exchanges operating in Canada.

Casa co-founder and CTO Jameson Lopp stated that Skurka’s kidnapping is the 171st known case of physical violence aimed at stealing bitcoins.

He noted that the frequency of such incidents generally correlates with the price of bitcoin.

“As prices rise, society becomes more aware of this issue, and as a result, more people with criminal tendencies decide it’s worth figuring out the return on investment of carrying out a physical attack on a known cryptocurrency holder,” he commented to the publication.

Back in August, Indian law enforcement arrested a man suspected of kidnapping two employees of the collapsed BitConnect financial pyramid and extorting $125 million in cryptocurrencies.