Missouri AG Sues Bitcoin ATM Operator CoinFlip for $1.83M, Seeks Ban

In brief

Missouri State Attorney General Catherine Hanaway is seeking $1.83 million in penalties and an operational ban against CoinFlip.

Blasting the lawsuit as “meritless,” CoinFlip argued it has robust consumer safeguards and urged the state to investigate actual criminals.

The legal battle underscores a major national crackdown, arriving just days after top competitor Bitcoin Depot filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway unveiled a lawsuit against Bitcoin ATM operator CoinFlip on Wednesday, adding to the growing number of legal actions nationwide aimed at protecting elderly consumers from skyrocketing scams.

The state’s top prosecutor accused CoinFlip, which already faces a major lawsuit in Iowa, of “knowingly facilitating fraudulent transactions” and profiting from them through opaque and potentially predatory fees, according to a statement.

“I’ll use every tool to flush out the cowardly scammers hiding behind screens and hold them accountable,” she said, comparing Bitcoin ATMs to getaway cars for fraud.

The lawsuit marks the latest example of a states taking actions to prevent companies that let people exchange cash for crypto from operating within their borders. Hanaway is demanding that CoinFlip be restrained from operating in the “Show Me State,” a moniker often associated with the pragmatic and skeptical nature of its residents.

Meanwhile, the state’s chief law enforcement officer is trying to impose $1.83 million in civil penalties against the firm.While CoinFlip bills itself as one of the largest Bitcoin ATM operators globally and claims to take consumer protection seriously, law enforcement officials argue its safeguards are failing.

A CoinFlip spokesperson described Hanaway’s lawsuit as “meritless,” classifying it as a misguided attack on a company that has spent years pushing for the passage of consumer protection laws for cryptocurrency kiosks.

“Rather than waste taxpayer money pursuing a licensed and regulated company, the Attorney General’s office should investigate, catch, and stop those criminals preying on Missourians,” they added, indicating the company is prepared to defend itself in court.

Hanaway’s efforts to boot CoinFlip come amid a surging number of scams—which heavily target elderly Americans—in which bad actors impersonating authority figures or tech workers convince victims to send them cryptocurrency under false pretenses before disappearing. In Massachusetts, for example, a scheme was flagged threatening arrest for “missed jury duty.”

Authorities have described losses as staggering. Americans reported $389 million in associated losses last year, according to FBI data. Hanaway claimed that, over the past two years, state law enforcement analysts have identified roughly 350 cases involving the machines.

Hanaway noted that CoinFlip operates 140 kiosks at locations like gas stations and vape shops across Missouri. More broadly, the state hosts 429 Bitcoin ATMs, according to Coin ATM Radar. Some states have passed laws banning the machines entirely, such as Tennessee.