In a troubling trend, cryptocurrency investors in the UK have fallen victim to a surge of high-tech theft, with criminals stealing over £700 million in recent years. The victims, often ordinary people trying to grow their savings, have been left powerless to retrieve their lost funds, highlighting the risks of the largely unregulated crypto market.
The story of Helen and Richard, a couple from the UK, illustrates the devastating impact of these crimes. For seven years, they had carefully amassed a portfolio of Cardano cryptocurrency, hoping it would appreciate in value. However, in a swift and silent attack in February 2024, hackers accessed their cloud storage account and drained their entire savings, worth around £250,000. The couple, who are not wealthy, had invested every spare penny they could find, and the theft has been devastating, forcing them to sell personal possessions and even become briefly homeless.
The rise in crypto-related crimes has been staggering. A 2024 survey suggested that around 12% of British adults, or 7 million people, owned crypto assets. Globally, the number of crypto owners is estimated at 560 million. As ownership has surged, so too have the attacks, with 2025 seeing over £2.5 billion stolen, according to investigators at blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis.
Much of this theft has occurred through large-scale hacks on crypto companies, with North Korean hackers alone responsible for wiping £1.1 billion from the Bybit exchange in 2025. While these losses are typically covered by the deep-pocketed firms, individual investors have also become prime targets.
Chainalysis research shows that attacks on individual crypto holders rose from 40,000 in 2022 to 80,000 in 2025, accounting for an estimated £532 million in stolen funds. Criminals are employing a range of tactics, from hacking and scamming to violent “wrench attacks” where victims are threatened and coerced into handing over their digital assets.
The lack of regulation in the UK crypto market means that unlike in traditional finance, there is little protection or recourse for victims. The Financial Conduct Authority warns that if something goes wrong, “it is unlikely you will be protected, so you should be prepared to lose all your money.”
Crypto security experts, like Matthew Jones of Haven, are now developing new wallet features to help protect individual investors. But the fundamental tension remains – the freedom of being “your own bank” with crypto comes with added risks that many are struggling to manage. As the crypto world continues to grow, the battle against these high-tech thieves appears far from over.