Wonder

Research Outline

Prepared for JORDAN J. | Delivered December 6, 2020

Bitcoin Theft: Recovery

Goals

To understand how to recover the theft of bitcoin by a resident in a different country. To determine the legal action/best experts, lawyers, or companies that can be taken if the person who stole it was located in a different country and how the laws in the US/New Orleans could be of assistance in this venture.

Early Findings

Cryptocurrency in FranceAccording to a recently updated version (2020) of the government's stance on cryptocurrency in France, it is evident that it is largely unregulated. This article provides general insights into how the government has begun to define it within the constraints of the country's laws. It provides warnings and reveals that there is a great level of risk that is associated with this type of currency. At the moment, France does not recognize it as a currency. 
As of March 2020, a court in France recognized Bitcoin as money. This decision was made during a court case between Paymium and BitSpread, companies in the cryptocurrency industry.
Stollen CryptocurrencyAccording to the CEO of Coinfirm, Pawel Kuskowski, there is about $10 billion worth of stolen crypto. In a response to a tweet, an intrepid crypto investor stated that there is a lack of recourse when addressing online crimes such as a hack, exit scam, or Ponzi scheme.
Recovering Stolen CryptoThe two most-recommended fund experts include FundsRecovery247 and Express Recovery Pro. In order to get help, it is advised that if one should report this theft as soon as possible.  
By teaming up with Kroll (a global investigation firm), Coinfirm launched a joint initiative called ReclaimCrypto. By utilizing the best blockchain forensic techniques and its established global legal investigation and asset recovery.
ReclaimCrypto charges a success fee that is determined on a case-by-case basis. A quick analysis of the current cases reveals that there are about 200 that are more likely recoverable. This would amount to about $1.5 billion. 
Prior to this partnership, Kroll has worked in the Crypto space before. This company has worked with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to address fraudulent coin offerings and helped track about $27.8 million of bitcoin that was stolen in Europe. 
Summary of our Early FindingsOur initial one-hour research reveals that there are experts/initiatives around the recovery of stolen cryptocurrency. This research has revealed that there is a global problem that needs to be addressed and that there are several victims in this space. 
This research was also unable to find any way that one could take legal action in France if the account holder was from a different country. Additionally, we do not see a clear path of how one could resolve these issues within the legal framework unless one already knew the perpetrator. 