Claims that criminals kidnapped Ledger co-founder and CEO Erich Larchevêque have reportedly been debunked, according to a local source. Reports of Larchevêque’s alleged abduction in France began circulating on Wednesday, Jan. 22, originating from a French-based profile on X. The initial claims suggested that a top Ledger executive had been kidnapped and was being ransomed by bad actors while French police investigated the matter. Although Larchevêque was not explicitly named in the original post, a photo of the CEO attached to the tweet fueled widespread speculation. 🇫🇷 ALERTE – Au moins un des fondateurs de Ledger, entreprise française leader dans la sécurisation des cryptomonnaies, aurait été kidnappé pour une demande de rançon en Bitcoin ( #BTC ). La Police et le #GIGN enquêtent à Vierzon, près du domaine d’Éric Larchevêque. Une affaire… pic.twitter.com/TJg0VSWlqz — Le Fil d’Info (@LeFildInfo) January 22, 2025 You might also like: FBI nabs crypto wash trading scheme on Uniswap Gregory Raymond, head of research and co-founder at investigative firm The Big Whale, later dismissed the claims. According to Raymond, there is no truth to the reports of Larchevêque’s involvement in any kidnapping. “Be careful with published information that could threaten an ongoing investigation in France,” Raymond shared on X, responding to the rumors. Ledger, a leading hardware wallet manufacturer, was co-founded in 2014 by eight cryptocurrency experts, including Erich Larchevêque, David Balland, Joel Pobeda, Nicolas Bacca, and Thomas France. The company reached a valuation of $1.4 billion following a $108 million funding round in 2023. 🔴 NEWS @TheBigWhale_ We are able to assure that @EricLarch (co-founder of @Ledger ) is not involved in the kidnapping rumor about him Be careful with published information that could threaten an ongoing investigation in France and possibly someone else's life — Grégory Raymond 🐳 (@gregory_raymond) January 22, 2025 This is a developing story. Read more: From lab to ledger: Human keys secure scientific integrity | Opinion
