Massachusetts Senate Moves to Ban Crypto ATMs Amid Scam Fears

Crypto ATMs in Massachusetts have been linked to millions of dollars in scams over the past year, prompting the state Senate to propose a ban on the unregulated kiosks.

The FBI reported that people had lost $389 million to crypto ATM scams nationwide in 2025, with nearly $7 million of those losses occurring at Massachusetts-based kiosks, according to The Boston Globe.

Norfolk County Sheriff Patrick McDermott described the process by which scammers operate: 'They deposit their cash. They usually are sent a QR code from the scammer. Once that QR code is inputted on the kiosk, that money is then converted to the cryptocurrency, and it is immediately sent off to a digital wallet somewhere.'

The state currently has no specific rules governing crypto ATMs, which have proliferated in Massachusetts locations such as convenience stores, liquor stores, and drug stores.