Crypto ATM laws in Rhode Island: a guide for operators (2026)

Licensing in Rhode Island

Kiosk operators must be licensed as money transmitters (currency transmission) by the Department of Business Regulation, R.I. Gen. Laws § 19-14.3-3.9(a), and must register each kiosk and get DBR's prior approval before activating it.

Regulator: Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation (DBR), Banking Division · License: Money transmitter license

Sources: R.I. Gen. Laws § 19-14.3-3.9 · R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 19-14.3 index

Rhode Island's kiosk law

R.I. Gen. Laws 19-14.3-3.9 to 3.13 (2025) · effective 2025-06-23

• Each kiosk must be registered with DBR and approved before it is switched on.
• A quarterly location report is due to DBR within 45 days after each quarter ends. It lists each kiosk's address, its start and end dates, and its virtual currency addresses.
• New customers (for the first 30 days after their first transaction) are capped at $2,000 a day; existing customers at $5,000 a day, across all of the operator's kiosks in the state.
• No fee cap appears in the statute.
• A bold scam warning, separate from the other disclosures, must be shown and acknowledged before a transaction. It says fraud losses are unrecoverable and transactions irreversible, and tells the customer to call local law enforcement.
• A list of material risks must be disclosed, along with the dollar and virtual currency amounts, fees, exchange rate, and the operator's name, address, phone and support hours, on or at the kiosk or on its first screen.
• From 2025-11-01, a physical receipt is required. It must show the transaction hash, wallet addresses, fees, exchange rate, sender and recipient details, liability and refund statements, and a complaints phone number.
• Operators must use blockchain analytics to block sends to wallets known to be linked to fraud, and keep a written anti-fraud policy.
• Operators must employ a full-time compliance officer who owns no more than 20% of the operator.
• Refund, new customers: a fraudulently induced new customer who reports to the operator and to a government or law-enforcement agency within 90 days gets a full refund of every transaction made in their first 30 days.
• Refund, existing customers: a fraudulently induced existing customer gets the fees refunded (not the principal) if they report within 90 days of each transaction.
• Live customer service is required at least Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM Eastern, with a toll-free number shown on the kiosk or its screen.

Sources: § 19-14.3-1.1 definitions (new customer = first 30 days) · § 19-14.3-3.9 registration and reporting · § 19-14.3-3.10 disclosures and receipt · § 19-14.3-3.11 fraud prevention and refunds · § 19-14.3-3.12 daily limits · § 19-14.3-3.13 customer service · Orrick InfoBytes, 2025-06-27 (H 5121 signed 2025-06-23) (secondary)

Bills and changes to watch

• 2026-S 2648: broadens the definitions of kiosk 'operator' and 'transaction' (no ban or cap). Introduced 2026-02-27 and heard in Senate Commerce (testimony on file). No later action was found.
• 2026-S 2504: 'establishes guidelines for the operation of virtual currency (crypto) kiosks', per a TrackBill title. Contents and status unconfirmed.

Practical hurdles

• Each kiosk needs DBR's prior approval before activation, so a new location cannot be switched on right away (statute; DBR processing time unconfirmed).
• Full principal refunds for scammed customers in their first 30 days, claimable up to 90 days later, put real money at risk on new-customer volume.

What we couldn't confirm

• Whether Rhode Island has adopted the MTMA, and whether DBR licensing runs through NMLS (not checked).
• Bond and net-worth amounts (not checked).
• The final status of the 2026 bills S 2648 and S 2504.
• Any Rhode Island AG action against kiosk operators: none found.