Bill introduced in Minnesota Legislature would ban crypto kiosks in effort to target scams
A growing concern of cryptocurrency scams, many of them draining the savings of older Minnesotans, is fueling a push to prohibit crypto kiosks across the state.
On Thursday, the Minnesota House Commerce Finance and Policy Committee's co-chair and DFL Rep. Erin Koegel introduced HF 3642. The bill would seek to prohibit currency kiosks, sometimes known as Bitcoin ATMs.
The bill was laid out and discussed among lawmakers and law enforcement. Both parties signaled they want to curb scams tied to these machines.
"We have heard from our law enforcement officials that they are a prime target who are looking to take advantage of our loved ones," said Koegel.
Detective Lynn Lawrence of the Woodbury Public Safety Department said that these scammers use these kiosks as tools in their schemes.
"These machines remain one of the most effective tools that scammers are continuing to use to steal money," said Lawrence.
Sgt. Jake Lanz of the St. Cloud Police Department described how one elderly woman was coerced into giving $80,000.
"It's definitely a target of our aging population," said Lanz. "These cases are incredibly difficult for us based on how the money moves from the ATM and then transactions that typically lead overseas."
Minnesota Department of Commerce's Sam Smith said they are in favor of the bill and will introduce broader protection in the coming days.
"The department strongly supports HF 3642. In the coming days, the department will also present a broader protection proposal that includes this ban," Smith said.
A spokesperson for CoinFlip sent WCCO the following statement:
"CoinFlip plays a vital role in the rapidly expanding global digital economy by empowering consumers to participate in this emerging financial ecosystem. Just as banks offer physical locations as well as physical ATMs, it makes sense that cryptocurrency would also have a corresponding physical infrastructure. Crypto kiosks are an important bridge between the physical and digital world using a familiar experience, allowing hundreds of thousands of people around the world to participate in the digital economy.
We can't speak for the entire industry, but we take consumer protection seriously and hold ourselves to the highest standards of compliance and transparency. As evidenced by our public support of Minnesota's existing legislation, we strongly believe in commonsense rules and clear disclosures and want everyone in the industry to be held to the same high standards we meet voluntarily.
We look forward to working with the state legislature and other stakeholders to bolster existing consumer protections and address the concerns heard today to create best-in-class legislation that protects consumers from bad actors while preserving Minnesotans' freedom to purchase cryptocurrency in the way that best suits their needs."
