Tennessee Governor Bill Lee Signs Bill Banning Crypto ATMs and Kiosks
Operators face Class A misdemeanor charges and up to 11 months in prison starting July 1
Quick Look
- Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed House Bill 2505 on April 13, banning cryptocurrency ATMs and kiosks statewide.
- The law, taking effect July 1, reclassifies kiosk installation as a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to 11 months imprisonment and $2,500 fine.
- Over 570 crypto kiosks currently operate in Tennessee, with operators including Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip.
AI-generated summary
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has signed a bill into law that will officially ban the use and installation of cryptocurrency ATMs and kiosks in the southeastern US state, leaving only a matter of weeks for companies to be in compliance.
Lee signed Tennessee House Bill 2505 into law on April 13, making the installation of a cryptocurrency kiosk a Class A misdemeanor starting on July 1. The reclassification of the machines as illegal under state law would potentially put operators and businesses hosting the machines at risk of up to 11 months and 29 days in prison and a $2,500 fine.
According to data from CoinATMRadar, there were more than 570 crypto kiosks and ATMs as of Monday, with operators including Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip. Cointelegraph reached out to a Bitcoin Depot spokesperson for comment but did not receive an immediate response. The kiosk operator's Nasdaq-traded shares closed down about 6.9% on Monday, according to Yahoo Finance.
The Tennessee law is just one of many state-level actions in the US targeting crypto kiosks in response to its residents being the victims of scams and other illegal activities. A Massachusetts town banned the machines earlier this month, and Minnesota's State Senate recently advanced a bill that could ban crypto kiosks across the state.
"Virtual currency kiosks have become a gateway for scammers to exploit Tennesseans, especially our seniors, with little hope of recovering their money once it's gone," said Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, who sponsored the bill.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said that cryptocurrency and AI-related scams were "among the costliest" for Americans in 2025. Its annual internet crime complaint report released in April cited more than 13,000 complaints related to crypto ATMs and kiosks last year, resulting in more than $389 million in losses.
Some of the types of scams involving ATMs include tricking people into sending Bitcoin (BTC) or other cryptocurrencies to an address by pretending to be a family member in need of assistance, or an authority figure claiming the individual needs to send money to avoid arrest or pay off a debt.
