Virginia has passed legislation imposing licensing, transaction limits and consumer protections on crypto kiosks, with the bill now awaiting the governor’s signature.
The measure requires operators to register with the state, pay licensing fees, cap transaction charges and implement daily and monthly limits, while banning marketing that describes the machines as traditional ATMs.
“The thing about crypto is that once it goes into the exchange, which is in the blockchain environment, there’s no way to trace it. There’s no way to get it back,”
Said Delegate Michelle Maldonado.
The bill introduces a 48-hour hold for new users to allow suspected fraudulent transfers to be reversed, mandates identity verification for all transactions and requires clear warnings about scam risks to be displayed on kiosks.
Scams account for about 7% of the crypto kiosk industry’s activity, according to Maldonado, who described the legislation as a proactive effort to prevent losses such as a reported $15,000 case in southwest Virginia.
Maldonado added that the machines often resemble bank ATMs and can confuse consumers unfamiliar with digital assets, increasing vulnerability to fraud schemes.
If signed into law, Virginia would join a growing number of states introducing oversight of crypto kiosks as regulators respond to rising fraud and expanding adoption across the US.