AARP Michigan Welcomes Lansing’s Move to Regulate Cryptocurrency Kiosks
LANSING, Mich. — AARP Michigan welcomed Lansing’s move to regulate cash-to-cryptocurrency kiosks, saying the city’s action could help protect residents from scams that can drain savings quickly.
AARP Michigan Associate State Director Rich Howard delivers public comment to the Lansing City Council. Image supplied by AARP Michigan.
In a November 6 release, the organization said it brought the issue to city leaders after seeing how scammers use the machines to pressure victims into sending money. The kiosks can resemble ATMs and let customers exchange cash for cryptocurrency.
Lansing City Council President Peter Spadafore said in the release that the city’s rules call for operator licensing, background checks and customer fraud warnings. He credited Councilmember Trini Pehlivanoglu with advancing the measure and AARP Michigan with bringing the issue to the council’s attention.
AARP Michigan said scammers may impersonate government agencies, law enforcement, utility companies or financial institutions, then urge victims to deposit cash at a kiosk. The funds are converted to cryptocurrency and moved to wallets controlled by the scammers, making recovery difficult.
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