Australia’s nationwide monetary intelligence company has launched new guidelines regarding cryptocurrency ATMs, which embrace setting money deposit and withdrawal limits of AU$5,000 (round US$3,250).
Restrictions on Crypto ATM Operators
In an announcement right now (Tuesday), the Australian Transaction Reviews and Evaluation Centre (AUSTRAC) defined that there will probably be enhanced buyer due diligence necessities, obligatory rip-off warnings, and obligations for stronger transaction monitoring.
Whereas AUSTRAC’s guidelines solely apply to crypto ATM operators, it additionally expects native digital foreign money exchanges to think about adopting comparable limits in the event that they settle for money for crypto transactions.
You might also like: 427 Crypto Exchanges Registered in Australia, However Regulator Says Most Are Inactive
The brand new situations observe issues raised by the regulator over crypto ATM compliance. AUSTRAC had beforehand arrange an inside activity drive to focus on cryptocurrency ATMs that weren’t complying with anti-money laundering guidelines.
The company discovered that folks aged between 60 and 70 have been probably the most frequent customers of crypto ATMs within the nation.
Brendan Thomas, AUSTRAC’s CEO (Picture: LinkedIn)
“It’s a enormous concern that folks on this demographic are overrepresented as clients utilizing money to buy cryptocurrency and, as proof suggests, that numerous 60–70-year-old customers are victims of rip-off exercise,” mentioned AUSTRAC’s CEO, Brendan Thomas.
A Large Marketplace for Crypto ATMs
Crypto ATMs work equally to common ATMs however facilitate exchanges between money and cryptocurrency. These transactions usually carry excessive charges.
In response to AUSTRAC, the variety of crypto ATMs in Australia has elevated greater than fifteenfold in two years—from simply 23 in 2019, to 60 in 2022, and over 1,200 in 2024. There at the moment are greater than 1,800 lively crypto ATMs working throughout the nation.
Knowledge from Coin ATM Radar additionally exhibits that Australia ranks because the third-largest nation by variety of crypto ATM installations. Localcoin is the main supplier, working 753 ATMs, adopted by Coinflip with 700 and Bitcoin Depot with 182.
Learn extra: Aussie Company Investigates Over 50 Remittance and Crypto Exchanges for Reporting Breaches
The regulator additional estimated that almost 150,000 transactions are made yearly by way of these machines, transferring round AU$275 million. The overwhelming majority of these—about 99 per cent—are money deposits used to buy cryptocurrencies, primarily Bitcoin, Tether, and Ethereum.
“Crypto could be a high-risk funding, however individuals who take into account and are prepared to just accept these dangers might discover it a handy choice,” Thomas added. “AUSTRAC will proceed to observe this house and take additional motion the place we see hurt occurring.”
Australia’s nationwide monetary intelligence company has launched new guidelines regarding cryptocurrency ATMs, which embrace setting money deposit and withdrawal limits of AU$5,000 (round US$3,250).
Restrictions on Crypto ATM Operators
In an announcement right now (Tuesday), the Australian Transaction Reviews and Evaluation Centre (AUSTRAC) defined that there will probably be enhanced buyer due diligence necessities, obligatory rip-off warnings, and obligations for stronger transaction monitoring.
Whereas AUSTRAC’s guidelines solely apply to crypto ATM operators, it additionally expects native digital foreign money exchanges to think about adopting comparable limits in the event that they settle for money for crypto transactions.
You might also like: 427 Crypto Exchanges Registered in Australia, However Regulator Says Most Are Inactive
The brand new situations observe issues raised by the regulator over crypto ATM compliance. AUSTRAC had beforehand arrange an inside activity drive to focus on cryptocurrency ATMs that weren’t complying with anti-money laundering guidelines.
The company discovered that folks aged between 60 and 70 have been probably the most frequent customers of crypto ATMs within the nation.
Brendan Thomas, AUSTRAC’s CEO (Picture: LinkedIn)
“It’s a enormous concern that folks on this demographic are overrepresented as clients utilizing money to buy cryptocurrency and, as proof suggests, that numerous 60–70-year-old customers are victims of rip-off exercise,” mentioned AUSTRAC’s CEO, Brendan Thomas.
A Large Marketplace for Crypto ATMs
Crypto ATMs work equally to common ATMs however facilitate exchanges between money and cryptocurrency. These transactions usually carry excessive charges.
In response to AUSTRAC, the variety of crypto ATMs in Australia has elevated greater than fifteenfold in two years—from simply 23 in 2019, to 60 in 2022, and over 1,200 in 2024. There at the moment are greater than 1,800 lively crypto ATMs working throughout the nation.
Knowledge from Coin ATM Radar additionally exhibits that Australia ranks because the third-largest nation by variety of crypto ATM installations. Localcoin is the main supplier, working 753 ATMs, adopted by Coinflip with 700 and Bitcoin Depot with 182.
Learn extra: Aussie Company Investigates Over 50 Remittance and Crypto Exchanges for Reporting Breaches
The regulator additional estimated that almost 150,000 transactions are made yearly by way of these machines, transferring round AU$275 million. The overwhelming majority of these—about 99 per cent—are money deposits used to buy cryptocurrencies, primarily Bitcoin, Tether, and Ethereum.
“Crypto could be a high-risk funding, however individuals who take into account and are prepared to just accept these dangers might discover it a handy choice,” Thomas added. “AUSTRAC will proceed to observe this house and take additional motion the place we see hurt occurring.”
