A UK crypto investor was attacked in his home by three masked men who were trying to steal his cryptocurrency.

The attackers reportedly beat him with hammers and held down his seven-month-pregnant wife while threatening to kill her and their unborn baby.

The criminals forced the man to unlock his phone and transfer hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of crypto to a wallet controlled by someone who was giving instructions through a video call.

They also stole several Rolex watches before leaving with a getaway driver.

This type of crime is becoming more common and is known as a “wrench attack”. Instead of hacking someone's crypto wallet, criminals use physical violence to force the owner to transfer the money themselves.

For me, the biggest question is how the thieves managed to link his crypto holdings to his physical address.

Either someone knew the person and leaked his address, or he was careless about his privacy and security and might have gone a bit flashy online.

The other issue is that once the crypto is transferred, it can be extremely difficult for the authorities to recover it, compared to many other forms of investment. That is both the beauty and the curse of crypto and blockchain.

The important lesson here is to be careful out there.

Always go low-key and don't be flashy or brag about your investments and money, whether it is crypto or anything else. Especially with the current crime and economic situation, you never know who might be watching.