After being kidnapped, one of Ledger's co-founders paid a partial amount of the ransom in cryptocurrency, which has now been traced and frozen.

BlockBeats News, January 24th. According to the Straits Times, on Thursday, a Paris prosecutor held a press conference in the evening, stating that Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife were kidnapped in their home in central France early Tuesday morning and taken to two different locations by car, where their hands were severely injured during the incident. During the kidnapping, the kidnappers contacted another Ledger co-founder, demanding a ransom payment in cryptocurrency, of which a partial payment has been made.

The rescue operation involved over 90 officers from one of France's elite tactical police teams, the GIGN, ultimately rescuing David Balland and arresting the kidnappers. The next day, his wife was found bound in a car but unharmed. 10 suspects are currently being questioned by the authorities. The prosecutor stated that almost all cryptocurrency payments made to the kidnappers have been traced, frozen, and seized.

Ledger's Chairman and CEO, Pascal Gauthier, stated in a release: "David and his wife have been released and are now safe, which we are immensely relieved about. David has been away from Ledger since 2021 and currently holds no position in the company."