Share this article

German Regulator Seizes 13 Crypto ATMS

The machines were operating without the required BaFin permission and posed money laundering risks, a BaFin statement said.

Updated Aug 21, 2024, 7:52 p.m. Published Aug 21, 2024, 11:44 a.m.
jwp-player-placeholder
  • German regulator BaFin seized 13 crypto ATMs in a raid that spanned a total of 35 locations.
  • The regulator requires crypto ATMS operators to have the appropriate licensing in the country.

Germany's financial regulator BaFin seized 13 crypto ATMs in a raid according to a statement by the regulator on Tuesday.

The machines were operating without the required BaFin permission and posed money laundering risks, the statement said. BaFin officials with the support of the police and the Deutsche Bundesbank took action against operators in a total of 35 locations. Cash amounting to almost 250,000 euros ($278,124) was confiscated.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the State of Crypto Newsletter today. See all newsletters

Exchanging euros for crypto constitutes as banking and requires a license from BaFin which wants to protect the integrity of the financial system and its consumers, the statement said. Illegal operators can be prosecuted by the police and face up to five years in prison.

The regulator has seized bitcoin ATMs before. The country is one of the EU member states that is enforcing the EU's wide-ranging bespoke crypto bill known as the Markets in Crypto Assets legislation framework.

Read more: German Regulator Seizes Crypto ATMs



More For You

Protocol Research: GoPlus Security

GP Basic Image

What to know:

  • As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
  • GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
  • Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.

More For You

Senate confirms Trump crypto-friendly nominees to take over CFTC, FDIC

Mike Selig, nominee to be chairman of the CFTC (Senate Agriculture Committee)

In a package of confirmations, the U.S. Senate approved Mike Selig to lead the CFTC and Travis Hill to run the FDIC, both with major potential reach into crypto.

What to know:

  • The U.S. Senate moved to confirm a massive package of President Donald Trump's nominees on Thursday, including two officials with important regulator roles over the crypto sector.
  • The chamber approved the confirmations of Mike Selig to run the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Travis Hill to lead the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
  • Selig will have a leading role as a crypto watchdog, replacing Acting Chairman Caroline Pham, who has been pushing an aggressive crypto policy agenda in the absence of a permanent agency chief.