Canada plans to ban all crypto ATMs
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Canada has announced plans to ban cryptocurrency ATMs nationwide.
The move, unveiled in Canada's Spring Economic Statement on April 28, 2026, targets a network of nearly 4,000 machines, according to The Guardian.
Government officials say the ATMs have become a primary method for fraudsters to extract cash from victims and for criminals to place illicit proceeds into the financial system.
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According to the Statement, Canadians lost more than $704 million to fraud in 2025 alone, with total reported losses since 2022 surpassing $2.4 billion. Authorities believe this represents only 5–10% of actual incidents.
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne framed the ban as part of a broader offensive against financial crime, one that also includes the creation of a new Financial Crimes Agency (FCA).
A bill to establish the agency completed its first reading in parliament this week, introduced by the governing Liberals who hold parliamentary majority.
Canada already has an financial intelligence unit called the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). It is responsible for uncovering illicit transactions but hands investigations off to police.
However, unlike FINTRAC, the FCA will have the power to both investigate and prosecute, addressing a long-standing gap in Canada's enforcement architecture.
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FINTRAC's crypto crackdown is already accelerating
Even before the ATM ban takes effect, Canada's financial watchdog has been moving aggressively.
So far in 2026, FINTRAC has revoked 50 money services business licences, 47 of which belonged to crypto firms including exchanges, wallets, and related services.
Along with the revoking, there have been two landmark penalties as well. Crypto exchange KuCoin's operator Peken Global Limited was fined for nearly $20 million for failing to register and report suspicious transactions, while crypto exchange Cryptomus was fined for $176 million.
Last year, FINTRAC uncovered $45 billion in transactions linked to money laundering, terrorist financing, and sanctions evasion disclosures.
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The US is moving in the opposite direction
Canada's aggressive posture stands in sharp contrast to the United States in terms of ATMs.
The U.S. has taken a fragmented, state-led approach to crypto ATMs rather than a federal ban. Currently, the country has about 30,000 crypto ATMs which is about 88% of the global total.
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center received more than 10,956 complaints involving crypto ATM kiosks in 2024, with reported victim losses of approximately $246.7 million.
Many states including Wyoming, Minnesota, Utah and others have adopted new laws to on these machines.
Indiana went furthest, adopting a total ban. There were nearly 900 kiosks in the state when the bill was signed.
At the federal level, a Crypto ATM Fraud Prevention Act was introduced in the 119th Congress in 2025, but it has not been passed into law.
Under President Donald Trump's second term, Washington has taken a broadly more supportive stance toward crypto, with industry-friendly regulators in key positions and pressure on major crypto firms eased.
