In brief
- Bitcoin Depot will begin requiring personal IDs for each transaction at its ATM.
- The company previously refined its compliance procedures in October.
- The Massachusetts attorney general filed a lawsuit against the firm earlier this month.
Bitcoin Depot will begin verifying customers’ identities each time they use its ATMs, voluntarily refining its compliance procedures amid mounting pressure from state prosecutors.
The move marks a “significant advancement” in Bitcoin Depot’s efforts to prevent fraud and other illicit activity, the Atlanta-based firm said in a press release. The company began implementing the policy across a phased rollout earlier this month, it added.
By making personal IDs mandatory for every transaction, the company is trying to tamp down on account sharing, identify theft, and account takeover attempts, it said. In October, Bitcoin Depot began requiring customers to provide IDs when they initially use its services.
“Verifying identity at every transaction helps us catch patterns that might not show up during onboarding,” CEO Scott Buchanan told Decrypt. “Bitcoin Depot takes this matter very seriously as we continue to prioritize customer trust and security.”
The firm operating 8,800 ATMs in North America saw its stock price fall 6.7% on Tuesday to $5.37, according to Yahoo Finance. Its shares have tumbled 80% over the past six months.
Bitcoin Depot says it’s enabling broader access to digital assets by letting customers purchase Bitcoin with cash through its machines, but state prosecutors in Massachusetts and Iowa are among those that have alleged the firm knowingly profits from scams against the elderly.
In 2025, Americans lost $333 million from fraud related to crypto ATMs, according to the FBI. And last year, a report from AARP found that 14 states passed laws targeting crypto ATMs, with states like California and Texas imposing strict transaction limits.
Scammers are increasingly targeting seniors using Bitcoin ATMs because of the irreversible nature of transactions on the asset’s network. They often coach victims to send them funds under the guise of “government payments” or “tech support” before disappearing.
In a lawsuit filed earlier this month, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell alleged that Bitcoin Depot knowingly facilitated crypto scams, “while removing safeguards against fraud and misleading investors in order to line their own pockets.”
The complaint notes that customers were only required to provide a phone number when purchasing small amounts of Bitcoin before Bitcoin Depot refined its policy in October.
Like the lawsuit brought by Iowa’s attorney general against Bitcoin Depot last year, Campbell alleged that Bitcoin Depot’s customers are subject to hidden markups. However, the lawsuit in Massachusetts is distinct because it asks a court to force Bitcoin Depot to adapt its business.
Under the lawsuit, Campbell requested that Bitcoin Depot be barred from accepting transactions valued at more than $10,000 “without taking additional steps to prevent fraud,” such as asking a series of questions to identify fraud risks and establishing a refund process for victims.
Last year, Iowa’s Supreme Court ruled that Bitcoin Depot was allowed to keep cash deposited into its ATMs that stemmed from scams. The determination was based on the fact that customers must attest they own the wallet receiving Bitcoin in order to complete transactions.
Still, the company agreed to return funds to scam victims in Maine last month, following a $1.9 million settlement agreement with the state’s bureau of consumer credit protection.
Although Bitcoin Depot works with law enforcement to help them potentially identify scammers, confusion can occasionally arise. That includes one case last year where authorities in Texas cracked into one of the firm’s ATMs with power tools in an attempt to retrieve funds.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
