Ransom Demanded for Kidnapped Ledger Co-Founder Revealed

The kidnappers of Ledger co-founder David Balland in France demanded a ransom of €10 million ($10.4 million), according to Le Parisien.

In a bid to expedite the payment, the criminals severed one of the businessman’s fingers and sent a video of the act to Balland’s colleague, Eric Larchevêque. Investigators permitted Larchevêque to transfer part of the ransom, which facilitated further negotiations and helped trace the attackers’ location.

Subsequently, most of the cryptocurrency was frozen and confiscated.

Not particularly active on social media, Balland updated his X profile after his release, humorously noting “2025 Kidnapping Championship” and “Fingers: 9/10.”

He also retweeted a post featuring a screenshot of transactions from his captors’ wallet, showing 27 unsuccessful attempts to withdraw the blocked USDT.

Le ravisseur dans l’affaire Ledger à essayé de retirer 27 fois ses USDT en vain?

Peut être d’ici quelques décennies les gens comprendront que le cash c’est plus simple à cacher que des USD sur la blockchain pic.twitter.com/9XFeAbrdPf

— Irboz(???arc) (@irboz) January 25, 2025

Earlier, police arrested 10 suspects in connection with the case. On January 24, seven of them were charged with criminal conspiracy to kidnap, unlawful detention with torture, and extortion.

During interrogations, the suspects claimed they were merely executors and logisticians.

The investigation is ongoing. The kidnappers face life imprisonment.

Back on January 21, Balland and his wife were abducted early in the morning from their home in the Cher department. The businessman was then transported by car to another location, where he was held and a large sum in cryptocurrency was demanded.

The rescue operation involved the GIGN anti-terrorist unit. On the evening of January 22, the victim was taken to a hospital for medical treatment. His wife was found the next day in a van, unharmed.