Hawaii outlaws cash-to-crypto ATM purchases starting October 1
Regulation & Gov ·
Governor Josh Green's Act 224 blocks kiosk operators from taking paper currency in exchange for digital assets, while leaving sell and swap functions untouched.
Hawaii will make it illegal to operate a crypto kiosk that accepts U.S. currency for a digital financial asset once the measure takes effect on October 1, according to Decrypt. Governor Josh Green signed the bill into law on July 9 as Act 224, and each prohibited cash-for-crypto transaction will be treated as a separate violation under the state's consumer protection statute.
The machines are not being switched off entirely. Operators may still let customers sell crypto for cash or trade one digital asset for another; only cash deposits used to buy crypto are barred. Lawmakers designed the carve-out around how scammers actually use the kiosks, since a legislative committee found the machines are increasingly exploited to target older adults who are pressured into sending funds to wallets controlled by fraudsters.
That conclusion rests on figures from attorneys general in Washington, DC and Iowa, whose investigations found more than 93% of transactions examined at crypto kiosks were tied to scams. Because consumers have other avenues into digital assets, the committee determined an outright ban on cash purchases was justified. Federal data reinforces the scale of the problem: the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded 92 kiosk-related complaints from Hawaii residents in 2025, with $3.85 million in adjusted losses — nearly four times the prior year's total — out of 826 crypto complaints statewide worth roughly $80 million.
Hawaii's banking commissioner, Dwight Young, has said the kiosks attract criminals because transactions are anonymous and difficult to trace, with scams often starting through unsolicited calls, texts or emails claiming a bank account was compromised or a jury summons was missed. Consumer affairs staff near the machines reported that most users appear to be kupuna, or elders, who seem frightened or under pressure at the time of transaction.
Around 57 crypto ATMs currently operate across four of Hawaii's islands, per CoinATMRadar figures cited in the reporting. Texas lawmakers are considering a similar ban after kiosk scams cost residents there $57 million, and Delaware has advanced its own bill, suggesting the restriction could spread. What remains unresolved is how enforcement will be handled once the law takes effect and whether operators will adjust kiosk functions statewide before October 1.