The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network today issued a notice urging financial institutions to be vigilant in identifying and reporting suspicious activity involving convertible virtual currency kiosks, also known as crypto ATMs.
According to the notice, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received more than 10,956 complaints involving CVC kiosks in 2024, with reported victim losses of approximately $246.7 million. The figures represent a 99% increase in the number of complaints and a 31% increase in reported victim losses from the previous year.
This notice describes illicit finance typologies associated with CVC kiosks, provides red flag indicators to assist with identifying and reporting related suspicious activity, and reminds financial institutions of their reporting requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act.
Examples of red flags include cash deposits just beneath the currency transaction report or CVC kiosk daily limit by either using multiple machines or multiple accounts, and multiple customer accounts or transactions linked to the same phone number or CVC wallet address.
In related news, AARP recently reported that, so far this year, at least 20 states have adopted or are considering new laws and regulations on crypto ATMs to curb abuse by scammers. A recent example is Colorado, which in June enacted a new law requiring crypto ATM owners to warn customers about potential fraud and established dollar limits on daily transactions through machines.
