AUSTRAC Cracks Down on Crypto ATMs, Suspends Largest Operator

Australia's financial-crime regulator AUSTRAC has suspended Cryptolink Pty Ltd's registration as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) for three months, effective August 9. The trigger was missed basic reporting obligations, particularly threshold transaction reports, plus ignored information requests from AUSTRAC.

Cryptolink operates the country's largest Bitcoin and crypto ATM network, with 96 machines across Australia. The company had previously paid a $56,340 fine in October 2025 for alleged late reporting and weak risk assessments. However, it appears this was not enough to avoid further action from AUSTRAC.

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas stated that Cryptolink 'met the conditions stipulated in its enforceable undertaking, [but] subsequently failed to meet basic reporting obligations, particularly for threshold transaction reports.'

The suspension is a warning shot for the sector, with regulators increasingly treating cash-to-crypto touchpoints as a potential scam and laundering channel. Australia hosts the highest number of crypto ATMs in the Asia Pacific region, with around 1,800 machines, up from just 23 in 2019.