The U.S. State of North Dakota is close to creating a licensing regime for crypto ATMs after its Senate passed a bill that provides a regulatory framework for the industry.
Originally introduced on Jan. 15, House Bill 1447 aims to protect consumers from scams involving crypto ATMs by mandating operators to issue on-screen fraud warnings to users, obtain money transmitter licenses, use blockchain analytics software to detect and combat fraud, as well as submit quarterly reports on kiosk locations and transactions.
Additionally, operators must appoint a compliance officer.
A report by TRM Labs found that crypto ATMs have facilitated at least $160 million in illicit transactions since 2019, CoinDesk previously reported, with law enforcement worldwide viewing them as a major money laundering and scam risk.
FTC data also shows a nearly tenfold rise in bitcoin ATM scam losses since 2020.
In the United Kingdom, the Financial Conduct Authority, the country’s markets regulator, has been increasing scrutiny on the sector with crackdowns on unregistered operators.
In 2024, the FCA charged Olumide Osunkoya for running illegal crypto ATMs that processed $3.4 million, marking the first such prosecution in the country. Osunkoya was recently sentenced to four years for his role in the illegal crypto ATM network, and was also convicted for forgery, using false identity documents, and possessing criminal property.
With rising fraud and regulatory scrutiny, the number of crypto ATMs are not growing despite BTC’s price growth in 2024. Market data from CoinATMRadar shows that the number of crypto ATMs in the U.S. has been roughly flat since 2022.