EVANSVILLE — In an effort to help combat scams involving cryptocurrency, the Evansville City Council passed an ordinance Monday with a few regulations for crypto ATMs in the city.
City councilors passed Ordinance G-2025-19 in an 8-0 vote after a presentation from Evansville Police Department Detective Sgt. Nathan VanCleave. Councilor Tanisha Carothers, D-Fourth Ward, was not at the meeting.
VanCleave said the city has around 70 bitcoin ATMs, most in gas stations. They look like a regular ATM, but instead of being connected to a bank account, they are connected to a currency exchange.
“You can walk to it, put some cash in there, and then instantly it will be transferred to cryptocurrency,” he said.
He said that may not sound like a problem, but the machines use about a 10% to 15% markup. So, if someone wants to buy $10,000 of crypto it’s going to cost $15,000.
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VanCleave said people who are caught up in a scam with crypto have been told they have a warrant, their bank account is comprised or a variety of other lies. The scams often target the elderly or those who don’t speak English.
“They’ll go to the bank and pull out $10, $20, $30,000, and go start shoving this money in these Bitcoin ATM’s where the scammers have already set up an account for them,” he said.
Once the money is in the account, VanCleave said it’s virtually irrecoverable and there isn’t going to be an arrest.
Two years ago, the city had eight such cases. Last year there were 20 and already in 2025 there have been 25 cases, VanCleave said. The average loss is about $10,000 per person.
The ordinance passed Monday establishes a section of city code titled Virtual Currency Kiosks. It includes a section that requires the kiosk to include a disclosure in bold about consumer fraud. The kiosk must also provide a receipt.
A dedicated customer assistance line must also be available, as well as a line for members of law enforcement to contact if the kiosk becomes a part of an investigation.
For kiosk operators who may be in violation of the ordinance, there are penalties outlined per offense. Those start at $100 for the first offense and up to $500 for continued violations in the same calendar year.