Tennessee Governor Signs Law Banning Crypto ATMs Beginning July 1

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has put pen to paper on a bill that will make cryptocurrency ATMs and kiosks about as welcome in the Volunteer State as a broken hard drive in a data center. Lee signed Tennessee House Bill 2505 into law on April 13, reclassifying the installation of a cryptocurrency kiosk as a Class A misdemeanor come July 1. The new legislation essentially transforms running a crypto ATM from a convenient side hustle into a potential ticket to the Graybar Hotel—up to 11 months and 29 days behind bars, plus a $2,500 fine for good measure. Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, who sponsored the bill, dropped a grim warning: "Virtual currency kiosks have become a digital honeypot for scammers, with our elderly residents taking the biggest hit, and once the money vanishes, it's about as recoverable as a sent email." Sexton pushed the legislation after constituents reported getting hit with scams and other sketchy activities through these machines.

According to numbers from CoinATMRadar, there were more than 570 crypto kiosks and ATMs holding down the fort in Tennessee as of Monday. The usual suspects—Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip—dominate the market. Bitcoin Depot's Nasdaq-listed shares took a 6.9% dive on Monday after the law signing hit the news. Cointelegraph tried to get a comment from a Bitcoin Depot spokesperson, but apparently they were too busy watching their stock chart turn red.

The Tennessee law is just another domino falling in a broader crackdown on crypto kiosks sweeping across the nation. A Massachusetts town banned the machines earlier this month, and Minnesota's State Senate recently pushed forward a bill that could outlaw crypto kiosks statewide. The FBI dropped some unsettling figures: Americans lost $11 billion to cryptocurrency and AI-related scams in 2025, with more than 13,000 complaints specifically tied to crypto ATMs and kiosks last year alone, amounting to over $389 million in losses. The scams through these machines usually involve classic tricks—like convincing victims to send Bitcoin while pretending to be a relative in trouble or an authority figure threatening arrest if they don't pay up.