- A Kent shop owner has become the first person in the UK charged with operating a cryptocurrency ATM
- Kent Police seized several crypto ATMs from the Gadcet shop during a search on April 28, 2023
- Authorities banned crypto ATMs in 2022, and this case marks the first arrest for violating that law
A shop owner from Kent has become the first person in the UK to be charged with operating a cryptocurrency ATM. Kent Police executed a search warrant on April 28, 2023, at a privately owned shop in the county, where they seized several cryptocurrency ATMs, including one that was publicly accessible. The operation of crypto ATMs was banned by UK authorities in 2022, with the first raids taking place the following year to root out those not abiding by the new law, but this is the first arrest made in relation to it.
Rahman Faces Money Laundering Charges
British crypto cashpoints were declared illegal in March 2022, with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announcing that no entities running them in the country had been awarded a license to operate and, therefore, were “doing so illegally”.
Several locations in the northern city of Leeds were raided the following February, but no arrests were made, leaving Habibur Rahman, 37, of East Ham, London with the dubious honor of being the first. Rahman’s computer shop, Gadcet, was searched last year, with Rahman arrested the same day, but only now have the charges been revealed: he is charged with operating a cryptocurrency ATM without the required registration as well as allegations of laundering £300,000 of criminal proceeds by converting the cash into cryptocurrency.
Rahman has been released on bail and is scheduled to appear at Medway Magistrates’ Court on October 10, 2024.
Users Could be “Handing Your Money to Criminals”
In a press release from Kent Police, Matthew Long, Director of Payments and Digital Assets at the FCA, emphasized the dangers associated with using unregistered cryptocurrency ATMs:
There are currently no crypto ATMs registered with the FCA – so if you’re using one of these machines you could be handing your money to criminals. We continue to remind people that crypto remains largely unregulated and high risk; if you buy it, you should be prepared to lose all your money.
The crackdown on crypto ATMs was part of broader efforts by the FCA to protect consumers and uphold the integrity of financial markets amid the rapid rise of digital assets. Rahman’s case will be closely watched as it may set a legal precedent for future enforcement actions against unregulated cryptocurrency activities in the UK.
