Most Influential: The Wrench Attackers

Cryptocurrencies are digital assets, by nature incorporeal and intangible. Some even call them “magic internet money.” Yet cryptocurrency investors aren’t immune to the physical realities of our world.

This feature is a part of CoinDesk’s Most Influential 2025 list.

One of the most influential forces in the space this year was the slew of violent attacks that leveraged physical violence, intimidation, and fear to steal people’s crypto.

The “wrench attack,” once a meme about how no amount of encryption can stop a metal object to the head, became all too real in 2025.

From Paris to New York to Sweden to Thailand, a new wave of threats emerged this year, where the price of holding your own keys wasn’t limited to volatility and phishing schemes, but physical violence against crypto holders began to ramp up.

These weren’t isolated events. Crypto OG Jameson Lopp has been tracking known physical bitcoin-related attacks and has now registered more than 260 cases since 2014, with incidents of wrench attacks up at least 169% this year alone. And Lopp’s numbers are based on attacks that have been reported in the news — meaning the true size of the wrench attack epidemic could be even bigger.

Perpetrators range from organized gangs to opportunists who used on-chain footprints, luxury purchases, and social media oversharing to pick their marks. Some posed as delivery drivers. Others waited at gyms, homes, or hotel rooms. The message was the same: give up the wallet, or else.

As a result, physical security is now a front-line issue in crypto. Lopp has been campaigning to promote protection against wrench attacks. Being safe in crypto doesn’t just mean holding your private key, but now also involves physical security. Depending on an investor’s profile, this could be anything from increased operational security (OpSec) to hiring armed bodyguards.

For some people, it also means another insurance policy. Some well-known companies, including insurance giant Lloyd’s of London, have started offering their clients coverage in the case of wrench attacks or related kidnappings. On top of that, wallet developers have started integrating security features like codes that trigger silent alerts or wipe out data.