The 26-year-old was ambushed and forced into a stolen vehicle by four individuals on Friday night as he returned to his home in Juvisy-sur-Orge, a suburb of Paris. According to a report by French radio station Europe 1, the kidnappers demanded the substantial sum in cryptocurrency.

During the ordeal, the trader, who has a following of 40,000 on the social media platform, was beaten. However, the situation took an unexpected turn when he revealed the low balance in his cryptocurrency account to his captors. Convinced he was unable to pay the ransom, the kidnappers released him the following day.

The incident is now under investigation by France’s Organised and Specialised Crime Division. The trader has been granted six days of work incapacity benefits to recover from the ordeal. This event comes amidst a reported rise in cryptocurrency-related kidnappings in the country.