Maine Strikes $1.9M Bitcoin Depot Settlement for Scam Victims
Regulators just clawed back a chunk of change from the crypto wild west.
### The Enforcement Hammer Drops
State authorities aren't playing around anymore. When a major Bitcoin ATM operator got tangled in a consumer protection mess, the response was swift and financially significant. The settlement sends a clear message: compliance isn't optional, even in the frontier markets of digital finance.
### Where the Money's Going
The entire seven-figure sum is earmarked for one purpose—making victims whole. It’s a direct refund pipeline, bypassing bureaucratic sludge to return funds to those who lost them. This isn't a fine going into a state's general coffers; it's targeted restitution.
### The Bigger Picture for Crypto
This is more than a single case. It's a precedent. As crypto matures and intertwines with traditional finance, the old rules of consumer protection are applying fresh pressure. The 'move fast and break things' ethos meets the immovable object of regulatory oversight. For the industry's long-term credibility, this kind of accountability isn't a setback—it's a necessary growing pain. After all, what's the point of decentralizing finance if you just end up centralizing the scams? The settlement proves the system can, and will, self-correct.
Maine Bitcoin Depot ATM victims will be settled
According to an update shared to the official website of Maine’s BCCP, bitcoin Depot, with assistance from the Maine Attorney General, has resolved its concerns with Bitcoin Depot’s practices.
The update claims that the BCCP’s agreement with Bitcoin Depot will see the company pay $1.9 million dollars which will be used to pay Mainers who lost money in scams perpetrated at Bitcoin Depot kiosks throughout the state by a third party.
The consent agreement also granted Bitcoin Depot a money transmitter license, allowing it to operate legally in the state, although Maine is not listed among active locations on the company’s website.
The agreement comes after a two-year-long investigation, and only people who were taken advantage of by a third party while using a Bitcoin Depot kiosk may be eligible for a refund. Such people must have been Maine residents between 2022 and 2025 and must have used a Bitcoin Depot kiosk in Maine during the same period to convert cash to cryptocurrency.
They must also have deposited the cryptocurrency into an “unhosted wallet” provided by a scammer or other third-party fraudster. An “unhosted wallet” is a type of digital wallet hosted and controlled by a user, rather than a financial institution, money transmitter, exchange or other virtual asset service provider.
The deadline for filing a claim on the Bureau’s website is April 1, 2026, and claims that come after that day will reportedly be dismissed. Those who tick all the boxes and file a claim within the time limit are expected to receive their refunds sometime in May after processing.
As for how much the refunds will be, the Bureau has claimed it will not know until it has received and reviewed all of the claims. This is because it is unclear how many Mainers lost funds to scams via Bitcoin Depot kiosks, exactly where they were located, or how much money each victim might receive.
Maine’s Governor praised the Bureau for consent agreement
The governor of Maine, Janet Mills, praised the Bureau for the consent agreement with Bitcoin Depot, claiming it “will put money back into the pockets of Maine people who were defrauded by predatory third-party scammers.”
Mills is very particular about consumer protection and has urged all Mainers “to talk with their loved ones about the threats of scammers and precautions to take to avoid these cruel and often sophisticated schemes.”
In response to the increased rate of financial losses linked to scams, Maine has adopted laws that protect consumers from third-party scammers, including the Maine Money Transmission Modernization Act, which was signed in 2024.
Last June, Mills also signed an emergency law, “An Act to Regulate VIRTUAL Currency Kiosks,” that put a cap on daily transmission amounts from virtual currency kiosks, and limited fees and exchange rates, while providing redress for consumers.
Superintendent of the BCCP, Linda Conti, has praised the new consumer protection laws as the foundation that enabled the consent agreement to happen.
The laws include an unhosted wallet provision, which requires money transmitters to employ new technologies to ensure that Maine consumers own and control their virtual wallets.
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