Cryptocurrency company WonderFi Technologies Inc. spent $3.6-million during the fourth quarter of last year in connection with the kidnapping of its chief executive.
The figure includes the cost of the ransom to secure WonderFi’s president and CEO Dean Skurka’s release, as well as subsequent expenses related to bolstering security protocols, the company disclosed last week in its quarterly earnings report.
The company did not specify how much of the total amount was for the ransom. The CBC previously reported that the ransom was $1-million, citing a source close to the investigation.
The kidnapping occurred shortly before 6 p.m. on Nov. 6 near University Avenue and Richmond Street in the downtown Toronto core, according to Toronto Police Service.
Mr. Skurka was forced into a vehicle by unknown suspects, who demanded money. He was later found safe and uninjured in Centennial Park in Etobicoke, about 23 kilometres west of where he’d been picked up, police said.
The company said in a statement at the time that client funds were not impacted by the incident.
Toronto police did not name Mr. Skurka, but The Globe and Mail previously reported that he was the kidnapping victim. After the incident, he said in social-media posts that he was “safe and doing well” and co-operating fully with the Toronto Police investigation.
“WonderFi has incredible initiatives in the pipeline, and we’re more committed than ever to building the future of crypto. This won’t slow us down!” Mr. Skurka wrote in posts on LinkedIn and X.
He declined to comment Tuesday on the kidnapping-related costs disclosed by his company.
Mr. Skurka joined WonderFi in 2022 when it acquired his cryptocurrency trading platform, Bitbuy Technologies Inc. He became WonderFi’s president and CEO several months later. WonderFi, which is backed by prominent businessman and television personality Kevin O’Leary, bills itself as Canada’s largest regulated crypto trading platform.
The exchange had $2.22-billion in assets as of the end of last year, according to the March 31 earnings report. Its revenue for the three-month period ended Dec. 31, 2024 amounted to $21.08-million, up from $13.72-million a year earlier. Its fourth-quarter profit was $928,918, down from $4.02-million.
Kidnapping incidents involving high-profile cryptocurrency figures are not uncommon, and have occurred in Canada before. Aiden Pleterski, a crypto investor who called himself the “Crypto King” and has been charged with fraud, was allegedly kidnapped by four men in late 2022, according to bankruptcy documents.