Canada’s federal authorities is planning to ban crypto ATMs to deal with rising fraud, CBC Information reported Tuesday.
Officers say these machines are extensively utilized by scammers to gather cash from victims and transfer illicit funds.
A largely unregulated {industry}
Canada at present hosts almost 4,000 of those machines, the second-highest focus per capita on Earth, in response to Coin ATM Radar.
Regardless of that density, the nation has operated with none industry-specific rules, with crypto ATMs merely lumped in with different “cash providers companies” — a class that additionally contains Western Union and unusual foreign money alternate counters.
Media studies and legislation enforcement accounts describe instances the place aged Canadians are coached into depositing money from retirement financial savings into bitcoin ATMs at fuel stations and comfort shops.
World crackdowns already underway
Different international locations have moved sooner on this entrance.
The UK successfully restricted crypto ATMs in 2021 by requiring all operators to register with the Monetary Conduct Authority — and as of 2026, no operator has obtained that registration, making each machine in follow unlawful.
New Zealand has launched laws to ban them solely, whereas Australia’s monetary intelligence company AUSTRAC imposed per-transaction money limits in mid-2025.
Within the US, roughly half of all states have proposed or enacted guidelines focusing on crypto ATMs, together with every day spending caps and necessities that operators reimburse rip-off victims.
The FBI reported People misplaced greater than $333 million to crypto-ATM scams in 2025 alone, and Maine secured a $1.9 million settlement with Bitcoin Depot over allegations its kiosks helped facilitate fraud.
What the ban means for Canadians
For operators like Bitcoin Nicely and Localcoin, which collectively run lots of of machines throughout Canada, an outright ban could be an existential menace.
The federal government says individuals will nonetheless have the ability to purchase crypto by regulated in-person providers, however some Canadians who depend on cash-to-crypto providers warn they are going to have few alternate options, since many Canadian banks already prohibit or block transfers to crypto exchanges.