Crypto ATMs are undergoing a serious crackdown across U.S. states as administrators look to cut down on fraud cases targeting the digital assets users. Starting Wednesday, a complete ban on crypto ATMs went live in Tennessee with Georgia having imposed transaction limits and reporting requirements for ATM operators in the state.
State regulators in the U.S. have observed that these ATM machines enable a speedy cash-to-crypto conversions hinging on anonymity. A 2025 report by the FBI had claimed that fraudsters duped Americans of over $333 million via crypto ATM machines.
Tennessee’s ban
Bill Lee, the Governor of Tennessee, had approved this ban on crypto ATMs back in April. Under his instruction, no new crypto ATMs can now be installed in the state and all existing machines will need to be powered down and unsialled.
As per CoinATMRadar, a total of 185 crypto ATMs have been active in Tennessee so far. Cryptobase, Bitstop, Rockitcoin, and America Bitcoin are among operators of the crypto ATMs in the state.
William Lamberth, the Tennessee House Majority Leader and State Representative for the 44th House District, confirmed that these kiosks are now officially illegal in the state through a post on X on Wednesday.
Georgia’s restrictions
In Georgia, a restriction on crypto ATMs has gone live on Wednesday as a way to protect seniors against scammers who are frequently targeted by high-pressure impersonation schemes to withdraw their savings and deposit them into untraceable criminal wallets.
Moving forward, crypto ATM operatiors in Georgia will have to first warn users that transactions processed via these kiosks are irreversible. These machine operators in Georgia cannot now charge more over 18 percent transaction fee. The move is attempted to stop operators from profiting off high markup rates during high-pressure scams.
The state authorities have also mandated operators to refund first-time customers who manage to report scams within the first 72 hours.
Crypto ATMs headed towards extinction?
Following Indiana’s ban in March and Tennessee’s rollout this week, Minnesota is set to enforce its own crypto ATM ban on August 1.
The state governments of Delaware and New Jersey are also reportedly considering similar measures. These discussions indicate a rapidly growing legislative wave aimed at completely outlawing the machines nationwide.
Crypto ATM operators have already started to see the impacts of these growing restrictions.
Earlier in May, Bitcoin Depot filed for bankruptcy citing doubts about its future amid a challenging regulatory environment and lawsuits.
On a global level, regions like Canada, the UK, and Australia have also been cracking down on crypto ATMs to curb financial crimes.
