Minnesota Enforces Crypto ATM Ban After Scams Cost Residents Nearly $1 Million
Updated
Updated · Fox Business · Aug 1
Minnesota Enforces Crypto ATM Ban After Scams Cost Residents Nearly $1 Million
3 articles · Updated · Fox Business · Aug 1
Summary
Minnesota's crypto ATM ban took effect Saturday, barring new installations immediately and requiring existing kiosks to be removed by Dec. 31.
Nearly $1 million in reported losses since 2023 drove the move, with investigators saying scammers often posed as law enforcement and pressured seniors to send money through nearby machines.
Seventy cases were recorded last year alone, totaling more than $540,000, while the average loss per transaction was nearly $6,800 and officials said many victims never report the thefts.
Crypto kiosk scams are hard to unwind because blockchain transactions are generally irreversible and lack the dispute and chargeback protections available for many bank and credit-card payments.
The ban lands as Minnesota faces wider fraud scrutiny: CMS froze more than $200 million in Medicaid funds on July 21, and four men later pleaded guilty to stealing $2.2 million from a homelessness program.