Key Takeaways
- AUSTRAC has placed a 5,000 Australian dollar ($3,250) limit on cash deposits and withdrawals on crypto ATMs
- Australian Federal Police revealed that a staggering 3.1 million Australian dollars was lost to crypto ATM scams in the last 12 months
Australia has put out new rules on crypto ATM’s to curb rising digital asset crimes. The country’s financial crimes agency- The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre( ASUTRAC), has placed a 5,000 Australian dollar ($3,250) limit on cash deposits and withdrawals on crypto ATMs
AUSTRAC in its press release ,has asked the kiosks to put out scam warning signs and called for more robust transaction monitoring and enhanced customer due diligence obligations.
“The conditions are designed to help protect individuals from scams by deterring criminals from directing them to a crypto ATM, as well as to protect businesses from criminal exploitation,” AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said.
Adding a caveat, Thomas noted that the “new rules are not set in stone, and the effectiveness of these conditions” will remain under review and adjusted if need arises”
The new rules come on the heels of a probe by an AUSTRAC task force that examined data from nine crypto atm providers in the country to investigate whether the kiosks had proper Anti-Money Laundering and counter-terrorism checks in place. The probe revealed that most users are over 50 years of age and account for almost 72% of all transactions by value.
“It is a huge concern that people in this demographic are overrepresented as customers using cash to purchase crypto and, as evidence suggests, that a large number of 60-70 year old users are victims of scam activity,” Thomas said.
He added that “new rules are designed to help protect individuals from scams by deterring criminals from directing them to a crypto ATM, and to protect businesses from criminal exploitation.”
A latest press release put out by the Australian Federal Police revealed that a staggering 3.1 million Australian dollars was lost to crypto ATM scams in the last 12 months. There are around 150,000 crypto ATM transactions annually in the country, and it is the third-largest crypto hub in the world
