ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (KVOA) – A nonprofit organization is campaigning to remove cryptocurrency ATMs in Southern Arizona, citing an increase in monetary scams focusing on seniors. The group claims these machines, now showing in native shops and fuel stations, are contributing to vital monetary losses for people unfamiliar with cryptocurrency.
A spokesperson for the nonprofit defined the difficulty, emphasizing the risks of those machines. “Criminals like to ship folks to strategies of cost that they are not aware of,” Brian Watson, a consultant of the Arizona nonprofit ROSE, mentioned.
Watson shared a regarding story a few girl who misplaced $700,000, considering she was investing in cryptocurrency. “It is very irritating,” Watson mentioned, referring to the frequency of such scams.
At present, Watson is partaking with the Oro Valley City Council concerning the potential elimination of those ATMs. “They’re very receptive and I believe is a begin of a course of,” Watson mentioned. He’s additionally open to discussions with Pima County leaders and close by cities on this matter.
This initiative comes in gentle of a brand new Arizona regulation that reduces every day limits for cryptocurrency ATMs, provides warnings, and mandates refunds for rip-off victims. Arizona Legal professional Basic Kris Mayes famous that over 600 cryptocurrency ATMs are operational throughout the state.
Mayes additionally says Arizonans misplaced $177 million to these kind of scams in 2024.
Residents like Anita are calling for extra training. “I believe much more training is required,” she mentioned.
We’ve got reached out to Bitcoin Depot, the corporate that we confirmed throughout this story for remark.
For extra details about ROSE, click here.
