My fiat story: How I nearly lost a brother because of banks

[nemesis_incarnate]

In many such scenarios, the victim is not released despite getting the demands of the kidnappers fulfilled.
You are really lucky that your brother was released but do you really think bitcoin would have helped ?
What if they got the bitcoins and still not released your brother. I am not trying to discourage you.
But the fact is that bitcoin has nothing to do with such scenarios although what you are trying to portray is true but still it shouldn't be encouraged this way.

In such situations, you would do anything to try to change the course of action that is taking place. Even if there is only a possibility.

[Outhue]

Sorry about your brother.

But how can we know that you are actually telling the truth? There should be a news about this in your community but you may not want to post it because your brother name will be on the news.

Be it true or not true, these are some of the advantages of bitcoin over fiat but these are not only the advantages because they are more. You have complete control over your bitcoin but you do not have complete control if it is fiat.

I don't even need to know if it's true or not, this kidnapping have become a norm in my country as we speak, the government isn't helping and we are left with no choice but to protect ourselves, people are getting kidnapped day by day, I already feel OP because it happened almost every week here to the extent that I've gotten used to such bad news.

What I don't accept is the fact that OP want to use Bitcoin to settle the kidnappers when the kidnappers aren't the ones demanding for Bitcoin, I believe that they won't accept Bitcoin because they don't know much about it, secondly OP will still need to exchange the Bitcoin back to Fiat through the bank.

In this case you can't push banks aside, you know everything about Bitcoin but not the kidnappers, if they do they might have just asked for it when you guys are on the bank issue, sorry to say I don't think this story is completely true, there are clearly few "not so right" part in the story.

[Becassine]

Banks are not children at heart, but it wouldn't have been their fault you'd lost your brother either. If it becomes super-easy to withdraw money, then there will be threats as well as kidnappings.
In any case, it seems to be becoming quite a problem in Nigeria.

https://www.bbc.com/afrique/region-68653322

A hostage negotiator told the BBC that paying ransoms may be illegal, but it's the only way for families to secure the release of their loved ones kidnapped by the gangs terrorizing swathes of northern Nigeria.

“Almost everyone in my village has had a family member kidnapped,” he explains, adding that he helps them free of charge.

And despite the ban on ransom payments, people continue to come to him, desperate for help.

Sulaiman admits that this is a frightening position for him: “The government doesn't like to negotiate with bandits and can send people to prison for it.”

According to the Centre for Democracy and Development, a think-tank based in the capital Abuja, some 30,000 bandits belonging to over 100 gangs operate in north-west Nigeria.

Despite the shortage of banknotes in Nigeria, the kidnappers demand that ransoms be paid in cash, as bank transfers are easily traceable.

Between July 2022 and June 2023, armed gangs demanded more than US$6 million (around 3,638,283 CFA francs) in ransom, according to a report by SBM Intelligence, a security risk consultancy.

For those who doubt this story, a little research into this terrible situation makes it perfectly believable, unfortunately...

[serjent05]

@OP sorry for all your troubles but it is good to know that your brother returned alive.  I won't blame the bank because as a bank user, one should know that there is a default limit on how much one can withdraw.  if they wanted to modify the withdrawal amount, they need to talk to the bank for adjustment.

Bitcoin or cryptocurrency might be the way to go since it has no limit and can be send anywhere.  But the problem would be the kidnappers whether they knew about Bitcoin and how to receive and send  it. 

I don't even need to know if it's true or not, this kidnapping have become a norm in my country as we speak, the government isn't helping and we are left with no choice but to protect ourselves, people are getting kidnapped day by day, I already feel OP because it happened almost every week here to the extent that I've gotten used to such bad news.

I chose to believe @OP because I believe he won't be lying about his brother's story.

What I don't accept is the fact that OP want to use Bitcoin to settle the kidnappers when the kidnappers aren't the ones demanding for Bitcoin, I believe that they won't accept Bitcoin because they don't know much about it, secondly OP will still need to exchange the Bitcoin back to Fiat through the bank.

I also think the same way.  We can't pay with Bitcoin if the one receiving do not know it.  Kidnapers won't wait for the time and learn about Bitcoin just to get the ransom.  The kidnaper are the one demanding fiat currency and not Bitcoin. 

[Zoomic]

I know that we shouldn't promote ransom payment using Bitcoin, but I would have done anything for my brother to be released. Each time I was called for ransom negotiations, I would be hearing the beatings and threats on the background and it was terrifying.

I have learned to always have Bitcoin as a backup because centralized platforms cannot be trusted. With Bitcoin:
-No need to upgrade the account
-No network failure
-No transaction limit.

I do not need to confirm whether this story is true or not; these things happen, so it doesn’t surprise me. I am only concerned that the government, through the banks, has failed woefully to ensure the welfare of the people. Why must we entrust our money to their care when we cannot access it during emergencies like this?

It also bothers me that the government and critics of Bitcoin keep stressing that Bitcoin is used by criminals, yet they have not done enough to make banks more accountable to the people. Instead, their actions have encouraged criminals to shift their attention toward Bitcoin. Yes, it is true that Bitcoin can be used by criminals to hide their identities, and this method is even easier for them than risking going out to collect cash or carrying out bank transactions, which expose their true identities.

Bitcoin alone cannot solve the lapses of the financial sector; we need more improvements there.

[Becassine]

The real culprit is the state, which is incapable of protecting its citizens. It's incredible that OP's brother was injured and yet went back to work at the same place as if nothing had happened.

Severe repression is needed, otherwise kidnappings will multiply (which already seems to be the case).

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

I have learned to always have Bitcoin as a backup because centralized platforms cannot be trusted. With Bitcoin:
-No need to upgrade the account
-No network failure
-No transaction limit.

Your transaction can be smooth with Bitcoin compare the traditional financial system. Especially in some emergency situations the banks network or one issue or another could just lead to a heavy delay in what you wanted to do so quick. This is not just the only flaws I have encountered with banks but I have also sent money to someone and the person didn't receive the money for long hours until the bank later bounce the money back to me. Some of those things happen in banks of some country and if you are exposed to cryptocurrecy when you face that situation, you will be very upset. Sorry about your brother mate.

[notocactus]

I know that we shouldn't promote ransom payment using Bitcoin, but I would have done anything for my brother to be released.

With Bitcoin:
-No need to upgrade the account
-No network failure
-No transaction limit.

Keep silent about your Bitcoin investment now and in future. If you already did it in the past, it happened and your life has some risk of possible Bitcoin physical attacks later.

People who are too noisy about their Bitcoin investment will face with this risk later but they can change their practice and have a more private and safer life.
https://github.com/demining/Physical-Bitcoin-Attacks
https://github.com/jlopp/physical-bitcoin-attacks
I know your story is not about Bitcoin physical attacks.

[Fiatless]

At this point you will end up joining the kidnappers,  

Sorry to say but that's how I view this whole thing, I don't want to say that it makes no sense for bringing Bitcoin into this matter. But I can surely say that are you ready to teach these kidnappers how to take more ransoms in bitcoin? You can't even say no, because you will be force to teach them or else you aren't safe either.

You are not thinking straight, there is no good that will come from you paying ransom with Bitcoin, they probably don't even know how to sell the Bitcoin back to Fiat, and if they catch interest in this idea you will have to teach them.

You think you do yourself a favour? No, you have just thought some bunch of killers how to collect ransom the easiest way possible, I know that Bitcoin is traceable but we both know that there are ways to cover track here until better blockchain experts are called to rescue.

Some members who commended might not have read or understood the original post. That is why I need to make these clarifications.

- We never offered the kidnappers Bitcoin as an alternative Payment.

- People who are familiar with these situations will confirm that most of these kidnappers are from a certain tribe with the highest number of illiterates. They might never accept crypto since it might be complicated. They always demand cash because it is easy to handle and hard to trace. There has been just one case that I know that they demanded payment in Bitcoin: Kidnappers free Abuja victim after ‘$15,000 ransom in bitcoin’

-Since we never offered them crypto as ransom, I am just wondering where teaching them how to use it as an alternative source of payment is coming from.

All I just wanted to point out is that there is a need to have alternatives. It might not be for a ransom payment. It could be for medical emergencies or even important business deals. Not having another source of financial transaction could lead to irreversible losses.

[Iranus]

Your transaction can be smooth with Bitcoin compare the traditional financial system. Especially in some emergency situations the banks network or one issue or another could just lead to a heavy delay in what you wanted to do so quick. This is not just the only flaws I have encountered with banks but I have also sent money to someone and the person didn't receive the money for long hours until the bank later bounce the money back to me. Some of those things happen in banks of some country and if you are exposed to cryptocurrecy when you face that situation, you will be very upset. Sorry about your brother mate.

Bitcoin's network is also not perfect, sometimes congestion is even greater than a bank network and many transactions take days to confirm. Many people also encounter inconvenient and uncomfortable situations when using bitcoin as a payment method instead of fiat, so far.

To be fair, none of them are perfect, each has its own pros and cons, and they complement each other. So, to make life more convenient and simpler, we should be flexible in using both, always have alternatives and not depend on just one.

[Nwada001]

The real culprit is the state, which is incapable of protecting its citizens. It's incredible that OP's brother was injured and yet went back to work at the same place as if nothing had happened.

Severe repression is needed, otherwise kidnappings will multiply (which already seems to be the case).

Nigeria as a country has been suffering from this insecurity on a national level since 2015 and it’s on the wide spread, with some states being at their worst currently, and the government are not doing anything about it or even showing much of a concern since the top officials are always not affected.

Oh yes, the government have failed in their duty; some have even said (allegedly) that everything in the country is now being used to play politics, even the lives of its citizens.

[WatChe]

All I just wanted to point out is that there is a need to have alternatives. It might not be for a ransom payment. It could be for medical emergencies or even important business deals. Not having another source of financial transaction could lead to irreversible losses.

There are countless such stories where kidnappers asked for huge cash and family of victim was not able to pay cash due to such limitations imposed by Bank. Every bank has a limit beyond which you can't withdraw cash in one day. There are solutions to real world problems like to pay huge medical bill in case of emergency we have options to pay through digital transfer of funds, Cheque payment etc. But no solution exists so far to counter the kidnapping scenario you explained.   

-Since we never offered them crypto as ransom, I am just wondering where teaching them how to use it as an alternative source of payment is coming from.

Kidnappers or bad guys are part of society and they are updating themselves with latest technologies. Through bitcoin we have already seen how digital ransom is demanded and paid through ransomware.

[Lida93]

Sorry about your brother.

But how can we know that you are actually telling the truth? There should be a news about this in your community but you may not want to post it because your brother name will be on the news.

I have heard of kidnap stories and one of such was told by the victim himself as testimony to we his colleagues about his ordeal in the hands of his kidnappers. I don't think it's something anyone would want to joke about because it's really terrifying.

What those kidnappers do is to create the atmosphere of fear in the mind of your family and friends whenever they communicate with them on phone negotiating about the ransom amount to be paid and the conditions to be followed which always includes never involving the police or you get your person in bodybag. Not every kidnap case is made public especially when the police isn't involved, meanwhile random has being paid and your person is released already.

 

Be it true or not true, these are some of the advantages of bitcoin over fiat but these are not only the advantages because they are more. You have complete control over your bitcoin but you do not have complete control if it is fiat.

Bitcoin always comes in handy in every emergency situation relating to quick and safe transactions. But in this case we will also consider if the kidnappers would have agreed accepting BTC or even have knowledge of what BTC is.

[Becassine]

Even in France we're now hearing about kidnapping, recently David Balland, the co-founder of Ledger was kidnapped with his wife for a 10 million cryptocurrency ransom. The father of a French crypto influencer was also kidnapped and found tied up in a car...

[peter0425]

Banks are not children at heart, but it wouldn't have been their fault you'd lost your brother either. If it becomes super-easy to withdraw money, then there will be threats as well as kidnappings.
In any case, it seems to be becoming quite a problem in Nigeria.

Banks definitely have to make sure it is not that easy to get your money. If you genuinely need it, it might seem like an inconvenience though they will say that it is reasonable. Some cases though it becomes ridiculous how strict banks are and you can have complete documents or whatever they need but somehow they will still need more from you.

For those who doubt this story, a little research into this terrible situation makes it perfectly believable, unfortunately...

In some countries, kidnapping with ransom is not that common and is just something that can usually be only seen in movies so I understand why a lot of people will doubt such story. In this case, the banks at Nigeria should accommodate cases like this especially since it is so common.

[moneystery]

sorry for what your brother experienced, but it is indeed annoying when we are in an urgent situation but the bank seems to be limiting the money that is actually our own. though if we think it is actually our money, and we have the right to do anything with the money, but the bank seems that they are the ones who have more control over the money and customers must follow their procedures, even when it is in an urgent situation they do not care about it.

this is what makes me understand the beauty of bitcoin that you can manage your assets freely, anytime, anywhere you need that you can access it, send it, or whatever you want, without any restrictions from anyone. it's like giving you 'freedom' over your finances.

[Rockstarguy]

I know that we shouldn't promote ransom payment using Bitcoin, but I would have done anything for my brother to be released. Each time I was called for ransom negotiations, I would be hearing the beatings and threats on the background and it was terrifying.

I have learned to always have Bitcoin as a backup because centralized platforms cannot be trusted. With Bitcoin:
-No need to upgrade the account
-No network failure
-No transaction limit.

Well, I'm very happy about his release. people would do anything to save their loved ones in situation like this. The advantage of bitcoin is that you have control over your money unlike when you go to the bank you will be given so much conditions on how you can get your money and spend it.

But what if you decided to send the kidnappers Bitcoin and it turns up to something different? Because a lot of people think different and see people who have bitcoin as people who have a lot of money. The idea to use Bitcoin to pay kidnappers poses risks. If they discover you have Bitcoin, they might assume you have more money and increase the ransom demand. It is very important to exercise caution when dealing with criminals and financial transactions, keeping Bitcoin holdings private.

[irhact]

I have learned to always have Bitcoin as a backup because centralized platforms cannot be trusted. With Bitcoin:
-No need to upgrade the account
-No network failure
-No transaction limit.

One advantage we always enjoy transacting with bitcoin is it's ability to break all these barriers we experience with traditional banks and their way of handling transactions at times. Bitcoin has and will always be the best alternative to the traditional financial money system as it goes ahead of all of the hitches that comes with traditional baking systems. But it comes with its own challenge just like everthing that has an advantage has got a disadvantage too, not everyone accepts Bitcoin or is aware of it and not every country accepts Bitcoin so there are countries where you may not be able  to use it but in every country where's its acceptable and can be used, it's definitely serve as a better alternative everytime which even beats the usual known by the citizens of such a country.

[roosbit]

This is some traumatic experience you went through!

I think if I didn't own a gun I would consider this as  an option to protect my family because you never know. And ransoms are like drugs, you take them today and tomorrow you want more when the money is done.

How do you know they won't comeback, protect your self and everyone close to you.

Did you go to the police after, maybe someone saw something and these guys can be found with any details provided to them.

[Ambatman]

- We never offered the kidnappers Bitcoin as an alternative Payment.

- People who are familiar with these situations will confirm that most of these kidnappers are from a certain tribe with the highest number of illiterates. They might never accept crypto since it might be complicated. They always demand cash because it is easy to handle and hard to trace. There has been just one case that I know that they demanded payment in Bitcoin: Kidnappers free Abuja victim after ‘$15,000 ransom in bitcoin’

-Since we never offered them crypto as ransom, I am just wondering where teaching them how to use it as an alternative source of payment is coming from.

All I just wanted to point out is that there is a need to have alternatives. It might not be for a ransom payment. It could be for medical emergencies or even important business deals. Not having another source of financial transaction could lead to irreversible losses.

So Sorry about your experience. It's a great news that it worked out well.
I'm not surprised that many are skeptical about the story due to past experience from other members
But I'm a Nigerian and can confirm that our security is shit.
With the people you are referring to that committed the kidnapping
It's a miracle that he wasn't outrightly killed something they prefer doing.
Thank God it all worked out.

@OP I couldn't read through the thread but was the kidnappers caught by tracking the account they used or was it done by the most traceless form of transactions
Cash?