Latest news with #CoinFlip
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bitcoin ATM Operator CoinFlip Explores Potential $1B Sale: Bloomberg
CoinFlip, a Chicago-based operator of more than 5,500 cryptocurrency ATMs globally, is exploring a potential sale as merger and acquisition activity heats up across the digital asset sector, according to Bloomberg. The company is working with an advisor to gauge buyer interest, the report said. CoinFlip could seek at least $1 billion in a deal, though the valuation is far from guaranteed. Discussions are still in early stages and may not result in a transaction. CoinFlip's move follows a wave of high-profile crypto acquisitions in 2025, driven by a rally in bitcoin's BTC price. Players like Kraken, Ripple and Coinbase have inked deals worth over billions of dollars this year, with others eyeing acquisitions to bolster their balance sheets or prepare for public listings. Founded in 2015, CoinFlip has expanded its footprint beyond the U.S. to markets like Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. It allows users to buy and sell crypto at physical terminals, catering to customers who prefer in-person transactions or lack access to digital platforms. The firm raised seed funding in 2018 from investors including Shoreline Venture Management and JetBlue's VC arm.
Bloomberg
5 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bitcoin ATM Operator CoinFlip to Explore Sale
CoinFlip, an operator of a global network Bitcoin ATMs, is in the early stages of weighing a sale as dealmaking in the cryptocurrency space heats up, people familiar with the matter said. The Chicago-based company is working with a financial adviser to seek a buyer, according to the people. CoinFlip is considering seeking at least $1 billion in the sale, though it's unclear if it will be able to achieve that valuation, the people said.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Brenna Bird sues cryptocurrency ATM companies she says scammed over $20 million from Iowans
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird has filed a lawsuit against Iowa's two largest cryptocurrency ATM operators that have cost Iowans more than $20 million, her office says. Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip, Iowa's two largest cryptocurrency ATM operators, were subject to a "first-of-its-kind investigation" in October 2023 for failure to protect users against scammers who were able to have millions transferred to them through cryptocurrency kiosks, a release from the attorney general's office says. Bird's office subpoenaed 14 crypto ATM companies for a list of Iowans who had sent their money through the companies' ATMs. The office interviewed those Iowans and investigated complaints, police reports and self-reported scams, according to the release. The investigation found hundreds of Iowans, mostly over the age of 60, had sent approximately $20,426,616 through Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip ATMs in a less than 3-year period. In all, $13,182,625 was sent through CoinFlip ATMs and $7,234,991 through Bitcoin Depot, the attorney general's release said. 'Con artists are evil and will stop at nothing to steal everything you have,' Bird said in the news release. 'We already know that they target older Iowans, but now it seems that they even hunt through obituaries to target widows. They convince these older women that they need help, and then send their victims to crypto ATMs. And the crypto ATM companies take a cut of the profits. It's not just wrong, it's illegal. The investigation also "exposed how cryptocurrency ATMs profit off of Iowans getting scammed," the release said. Bitcoin Depot takes 23% of the money Iowans send through machines, while CoinFlip takes 21%, according to the release. Bird is suing both companies for violating the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act. The suit alleges both companies profit off of scam victims through these transaction fees and that they deceive Iowans about their refund policies. "I'm fighting to get Iowans their money back and force the crypto ATM companies to make big changes," Bird said in the release. "No Iowan should get ripped off like this.' The investigation into crypto ATM companies is ongoing, according to the release. If you or someone you know has been a target of a cryptocurrency ATM scam, reach out to the Iowa Attorney General's Office at 1-888-777-4590 or file a complaint online. Kyle Werner is a reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@ This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa cryptocurrency scam over $20 million in Iowa Brenna Bird lawsuit
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Iowa attorney general files lawsuits against crypto ATM operators
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird on Wednesday announced lawsuits against Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip, Iowa's two largest cryptocurrency ATM operators, over their failures that allowed Iowans to transfer millions of dollars to scammers through their kiosks. The announcement was made during a press conference at the Iowa Bankers Association in Johnston. Speakers at the press conference included: Brenna Bird, Iowa Attorney General Daniel Barnes, Deputy Attorney General for Consumer Protection Adam Gregg, President and CEO of the Iowa Bankers Association Loree, Cryptocurrency ATM scam survivor Charles Webster, Detective with the Ankeny Police Department In October 2023, the Iowa Attorney General's office launched a first-of-its-kind investigation into cryptocurrency ATM companies. The office subpoenaed 14 total crypto ATM companies for a list of Iowans who had sent money through their kiosks. The office then contacted those Iowans by phone and email. It also investigated complaints, police reports, and self-reported scams. The investigation revealed that hundreds of Iowans sent more than $20 million through Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip ATMs in a less than 3-year period. The majority of scam victims were over the age of 60. 'Con artists are evil and will stop at nothing to steal everything you have,' said Attorney General Bird. 'We already know that they target older Iowans, but now it seems that they even hunt through obituaries to target widows. They convince these older women that they need help, and then send their victims to crypto ATMs. And the crypto ATM companies take a cut of the profits. It's not just wrong, it's illegal. I'm fighting to get Iowans their money back and force the crypto ATM companies to make big changes. No Iowan should get ripped off like this.' The investigation also exposed how cryptocurrency ATMs profit off of Iowans getting scammed. Bitcoin Depot takes a 23% cut of the money Iowans send through the machines, and CoinFlip claims 21%. The lawsuits allege that both Bitcoin Depot and CoinFlip profit directly from Iowa scam victims by imposing excessive, and often hidden, transaction fees. It also alleges that Bitcoin Depot deceives Iowans about its refund policy. Attorney General Bird is suing both companies for violating the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act. The investigation into crypto ATM companies is ongoing. If you or someone you know has been targeted by a crypto ATM scam, contact the Iowa Attorney General's office at 1-888-777-4590 or file a complaint here. Read the fact sheet here. Read the Bitcoin Depot lawsuit here. Read the CoinFlip lawsuit here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
R.I. House bill would limit transactions, add warning labels to crypto kiosks
A sign advertising a CoinFlip crypto kiosk is seen in a business' window on Atwells Avenue in Providence. Lawmakers and advocacy organizations like AARP are looking to tighten regulations to protect older adults from scams involving the machines. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) Timmons Roberts of Providence has a Ph.D. But someone pretending to be a federal marshal over the phone still ended up scamming him out of $2,200 last year. The scammer convinced Roberts to withdraw money from his bank, then feed the cash into a Coinstar machine. The supermarket fixture was once used to easily count spare change. More recently, the units have begun to double as cryptocurrency kiosks. 'It's kind of shocking to me how many people don't want to talk about it, and I certainly thought I would never be scammed,' the Brown University environmental sciences and sociology professor told the House Committee on Innovation, Internet and Technology on Tuesday. 'It can happen to you.' Roberts testified at the State House in support of a bill that would more tightly regulate cryptocurrency kiosks, which function like ATMs and allow people to convert cash into virtual currencies like Bitcoin. The crypto purchased as these machines can be traded to other users' virtual wallets as well. Coin ATM Radar, a kiosk directory site, lists 113 units active in Rhode Island, although that site doesn't list units owned by Coinstar. Rep. Julie Casimiro, a North Kingstown Democrat, is lead sponsor of H5121, which would give the state's Department of Business Regulation more purview over cryptocurrency kiosks by determining fees and daily transaction limits. Like most fledgling bills, Casimiro's legislation was procedurally held for further study. But the lawmaker thinks the bill is improved from a similar one she submitted last year. 'It's a really good consumer protection bill,' she testified before the committee. 'It's a lot different than it was last year. We've worked with both the cryptocurrency vendors and AARP. I think we have a couple of more areas that we negotiate on, but I think it's in place where we can have cryptocurrency vendors actually successfully running their business while still protecting our older population.' Casimiro's bill would establish the following rules for crypto kiosks across the state: Daily transactions would be limited to $1,000 per customer, per day, across the state. Kiosk operators would need to cap transaction fees at $5 or 3%, whichever is higher. Victims of fraud who have never used a crypto kiosk before ('new customers,' in the bill's language) would be eligible for refunds from the kiosk operator. Cryptocurrency companies would need proper licensing as money transmitters to continue operating kiosks in the state. Companies would also need to register with the Department of Business Regulation and submit quarterly reports that inventory the kiosks they own in the state. Crypto operators would need to add additional warnings and disclosures to the terminals' interfaces to reduce the likelihood of fraud. Terms and conditions would also displayed before any transaction can be completed. Paper receipts would be supplied with each transaction with the intent of providing a bigger paper trail for investigators if fraud occurs. In 2024, the Federal Trade Commission released data showing the sizable problem crypto ATMS have become, especially for older people. From January through June 2024, the FTC estimated fraud losses of $65 million via crypto ATM scams. People over age 60 were three times more likely than younger adults to report being victimized, and the median loss in this time period was $10,000. In Roberts' case, he was driving through Massachusetts when he picked up a phone call from an unknown number. The caller claimed to be a federal marshal and said that Roberts was under federal custody and being held in contempt because he hadn't shown up for federal jury duty in Providence. The scammer told Roberts he would have to wait in 'processing' at the courthouse for eight to 10 hours, but that the process could be expedited if Roberts paid a reimbursable, $2,500 fee ahead of time at a 'federal payment kiosk' — in this case, a Coinstar terminal with crypto trading capabilities. Roberts took out $2,200 at a Citizens Bank branch in a Sturbridge, Massachusetts, Stop and Shop, which also had a crypto-enabled CoinStar. Roberts withdrew and sent the money in two separate transactions per the scammer's instructions — a means of evading federal fraud laws that trigger with transfers over $2,000. When Roberts approached the branch teller for more, the employee wondered why Roberts was on the phone and asked to talk to the man on the other end. The scammer maintained that they were a federal marshal, so the teller told Roberts to hang up. The clerk then informed the professor he had likely been scammed. 'Looking back, of course, it seems absurd, but when you're in this moment, you don't know,' Roberts said. 'It was only the teller at the bank that saved me from losing any more money.' A call later that day to the U.S. District Court in Providence, Roberts said, confirmed that other people had called in with details of the same scam. Rep. David Morales, a Providence Democrat, thanked Casimiro for introducing the bill, and noted that last year one of his loved ones had lost $10,000 to a cryptocurrency scam that involved sending money via a kiosk, which he said did not display any fraud warnings. 'It's been hard to have any form of accountability,' Morales said, and noted that the bill's push for disclaimers when using crypto might have saved his loved one from losing $10,000 from her life savings. After Roberts' testimony, the bill's hearing concluded, and Rep. John Lombardi, a Providence Democrat, came up to introduce a separate bill. 'After that testimony, I don't know what to do,' he said. 'I don't know whether to cry or start throwing punches.' While Roberts was the only scam victim to testify in person, a number of testimonies, both spoken and written, showed support for the bill. AARP Rhode Island submitted several supportive letters from both organization leaders and volunteers ahead of the hearing. Officials from the state treasurer's office and Financial Crimes Unit of the Rhode Island State Police also attended to support Casimiro's bill. Support was matched by testimony from crypto industry representatives, who worried the legislation could essentially double as a ban on their business activities in the Ocean State. Larry Lipka, the legal counsel for the Chicago-based CoinFlip, testified in a letter and in person to the committee that his employer agrees with much in the bill, from proper licensing to the necessity of disclosures. There are six pages of fraud warnings which users must confirm before they can complete a transaction on CoinFlip terminals, Lipka said. The company has 15 kiosks in Rhode Island and 6,000 across the globe. 'We all share the goal of protecting consumers from bad actors who can depart them from their hard-earned money, and that's why we support about 95% of this AARP-drafted bill,' Lipka said. But CoinFlip was concerned about the refund provision which, as currently drafted, 'goes beyond federal Reg E,' which guards consumers against fraudulent and unauthorized transactions, Lipka said. 'We already, as a company, voluntarily refund scam victims the fee that they pay to us, because we don't want to profit off of bad actors, and we would support such a provision here in Rhode Island,' Lipka said. 'If we must refund victims authorized transactions that results in a double loss to us, both the crypto we purchased and sent per the customer instructions and the cash the customer put into the kiosk. It would be like requiring Target to refund the purchase of a gift card if the customer later gives their gift card to a bad actor.' The $1,000 daily limit was another point of contention for CoinFlip and could actually hamper money laundering and fraud prevention efforts, as it would encourage using multiple kiosk operators, thereby scattering evidence of criminal activity. The company would be OK with a potential daily limit for new users, but a $1,000 cap might deter repeat business return customers — who, Lipka pointed out, are allowed $10,000 a day under a recently passed Minnesota law, the same as the federal limit on total gift card transactions in a single day. The Minnesota law caps new users at $2,000 a day, and was supported by the AARP. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
