HB 354: "An Act relating to virtual currency kiosks; relating to transactions involving virtual currency; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 354 01 "An Act relating to virtual currency kiosks; relating to transactions involving virtual 02 currency; and providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 06.55 is amended by adding new sections to read: 05 Article 1A. Virtual Currency Kiosks. 06 Sec. 06.55.120. Virtual currency kiosk operator licensing and registration. 07 (a) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not engage in a virtual currency kiosk 08 transaction or hold itself out as being able to engage in virtual currency kiosk 09 transactions with or on behalf of another person unless the virtual currency kiosk 10 operator holds a money transmission license. 11 (b) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not locate a virtual currency kiosk 12 in the state unless the virtual currency kiosk operator registers with and obtains the 13 prior approval of the department to operate the virtual currency kiosk in the location. 14 The department may deny a request to locate a virtual currency kiosk, or may require
01 additional safeguards, in a location that has documented high fraud patterns or 02 repeated customer complaints. 03 Sec. 06.55.125. Reporting. On or before March 31 of each year, a virtual 04 currency kiosk operator shall submit an annual report to the department relating to the 05 virtual currency kiosk operator's business conducted in the state during the previous 06 calendar year. The report must be on a form prescribed by the department and include 07 a summary of 08 (1) fraud complaints received by the virtual currency kiosk operator; 09 (2) refunds issued by the virtual currency kiosk operator; 10 (3) prevention measures implemented by the virtual currency kiosk 11 operator; 12 (4) interactions the virtual currency kiosk operator had with law 13 enforcement relating to fraud; and 14 (5) data on incidents involving senior citizens at a virtual currency 15 kiosk operated by the virtual currency kiosk operator, including demographic data if 16 available. 17 Sec. 06.55.130. Disclosures and receipts. (a) When a user engages with a 18 virtual currency kiosk, the virtual currency kiosk operator shall obtain 19 acknowledgment of receipt of all disclosures required under this section before 20 completing a transaction. 21 (b) A virtual currency kiosk must prominently display on the kiosk screen for 22 each transaction the following disclosures: 23 (1) a warning, written prominently and in bold type, stating 24 Do not send money to strangers or unknown parties, especially 25 if the person pressures you by telephone call, text message, or 26 electronic mail and claims to be a family member, government official, 27 or authority figure in distress. If a person pressures you to complete this 28 transaction, hang up or end the communication and contact a trusted 29 family member or law enforcement immediately; 30 (2) a clear statement that a virtual currency transaction is irreversible 31 and nonrefundable except as provided by law;
01 (3) the address and telephone number of the Alaska state troopers, 02 local law enforcement, and the toll-free telephone number of a nonprofit that provides 03 resources for protecting senior citizens; 04 (4) a prominent warning about common scams, with specific emphasis 05 on those targeting seniors, including government impersonation, romance scams, 06 investment fraud, tech support scams, family emergency scams, threats of arrest or 07 deportation, and scams claiming to be a grandchild or other relative; 08 (5) a prompt asking the user if the user is 60 years of age or older; if 09 the user answers yes to the prompt, the virtual currency kiosk operator must provide 10 additional information or human assistance to the user; and 11 (6) the total amount of the transaction, including all transaction fees, in 12 United States dollars. 13 (c) The disclosures required under this section must be provided in English, 14 Spanish, and any other language the virtual currency kiosk operator uses to advertise 15 or solicit business in the state. 16 (d) After the completion of each transaction, the virtual currency kiosk 17 operator shall provide users with a paper or electronic receipt. In addition to the 18 information required under AS 06.55.830, the receipt must include the following 19 information: 20 (1) the virtual currency kiosk operator's name, address, and customer 21 service telephone number; 22 (2) the type, date, and time of the transaction; 23 (3) the value of the transaction, in United States currency; 24 (4) each applicable virtual currency wallet address, value, and 25 transaction hash, if applicable; 26 (5) a fraud warning with specific instructions directing senior citizens 27 how to report fraud to law enforcement, the office of the Department of Health that 28 administers adult protective services, or the Department of Commerce, Community, 29 and Economic Development; and 30 (6) a statement of the virtual currency kiosk operator's refund policy. 31 Sec. 06.55.135. Fraud and anti-money laundering policy. A virtual currency
01 kiosk operator shall take reasonable steps to detect and prevent fraud and money 02 laundering, including establishing and maintaining a written anti-fraud policy that 03 must, at a minimum, 04 (1) identify and assess fraud-related and money-laundering-related risk 05 areas, monitoring, periodic review, and mitigation procedures, and special protocols to 06 mitigate risks for users who are senior citizens; 07 (2) designate a compliance officer; the compliance officer may not be 08 the chief executive officer or have an ownership interest in 20 percent or more in the 09 virtual currency kiosk operator; 10 (3) use blockchain analytics to screen transactions and prevent 11 transfers to virtual currency wallets known to be associated with fraud or illicit 12 activity; 13 (4) require verbal confirmation, either through telephone or video call, 14 with a user who is 59 years of age or younger before authorizing a transaction of $300 15 or more or who is 60 years of age or older before authorizing a transaction of any 16 amount; during a telephone or video call with a user who is 60 years of age or older, 17 the virtual currency kiosk operator shall offer to contact a designated trusted family 18 member or advocate for secondary verification; 19 (5) require a user to verify the user's identity using a government- 20 issued document for a transaction greater than $1,000 or, if the user is 60 years of age 21 or older, a transaction greater than $300; 22 (6) include a staffed customer service helpline that is available seven 23 days a week between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. Alaska time and during all other hours 24 that a virtual currency kiosk is open for business; the helpline must include options for 25 non-English speakers and priority routing for senior citizens; and 26 (7) mandate that the virtual currency kiosk operator will provide all 27 relevant transaction records, including virtual currency wallet address records and the 28 results of blockchain analytics, within 48 hours after receiving a request by a law 29 enforcement agency that is investigating suspected fraud. 30 Sec. 06.55.140. Department outreach. The department shall regularly engage 31 in community outreach by providing education materials and presenting to senior
01 centers, senior citizens' organizations, and other places and organizations that serve 02 senior citizens. The outreach must focus on educating senior citizens on the risks 03 associated with using a virtual currency kiosk. When conducting community outreach 04 under this section, the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic 05 Development shall seek assistance from the Alaska Commission on Aging and the 06 office of the Department of Health that administers adult protective services. 07 Sec. 06.55.145. Refunds. (a) For cases related to fraud, a virtual currency 08 kiosk operator shall issue a refund to a user in the full amount of each transaction paid 09 by the user at the time of the transaction, including transaction fees, if the user reports 10 the fraud to a law enforcement agency and the virtual currency kiosk operator within 11 120 days after the transaction and submits to the virtual currency kiosk operator a 12 police report or report by the department detailing the fraudulent nature of the 13 transaction. 14 (b) If the conditions for a refund under this section are met and the virtual 15 currency kiosk operator does not provide a refund to the user, the virtual currency 16 kiosk operator shall be liable for treble damages to the user or $10,000, whichever is 17 greater. 18 Sec. 06.55.150. Transaction limit. (a) A virtual currency kiosk operator may 19 not accept from a user who is 60 years of age or older transactions totaling more than 20 $1,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, in one calendar day. For a user who is 59 21 years of age or younger, a virtual currency kiosk operator may not accept transactions 22 totaling more than $2,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, in one calendar day. 23 (b) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not accept transactions totaling 24 more than $10,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, from a user in a 30-day 25 period. 26 (c) The limits in this section apply to all products offered by a virtual currency 27 kiosk operator. The use of alternative products, including online purchasing or over- 28 the-counter platforms, may not be employed to circumvent or exceed the limits in this 29 section. 30 Sec. 06.55.155. Transaction fees. The virtual currency kiosk operator must 31 disclose to a user the total transaction fees that will be charged for a transaction before
01 the user completes the transaction. The total transaction fees that a virtual currency 02 kiosk operator charges a user for a transaction may not exceed the greater of $5 or 10 03 percent of the transaction amount. 04 Sec. 06.55.160. Penalties. Notwithstanding AS 06.55.605, a person that 05 violates AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165 is subject to administrative action, including civil 06 penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation a day. 07 Sec. 06.55.165. Definitions. In AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165, 08 (1) "blockchain analytics" means tools or services that analyze 09 distributed ledger data to identify risks associated with wallet addresses or 10 transactions, including links to fraud, illicit activity, or sanctioned entities; 11 (2) "virtual currency" means a digital representation of value that is 12 used as a medium of exchange, unit of account, or store of value; 13 (3) "virtual currency kiosk" means an electronic device or machine that 14 enables a customer to purchase or sell virtual currency using United States currency 15 without direct assistance from another person; 16 (4) "virtual currency kiosk operator" means a person that owns, 17 operates, manages, or controls a virtual currency kiosk located in the state; 18 (5) "virtual currency kiosk transaction" means a transaction conducted 19 or performed, in whole or in part, by electronic means through a virtual currency kiosk 20 or a transaction made at a virtual currency kiosk to purchase virtual currency with 21 United States dollars or to sell virtual currency for United States dollars. 22 * Sec. 2. AS 06.55.840 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 23 (b) This section does not apply to a refund requested for a virtual currency 24 kiosk transaction under AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165. 25 * Sec. 3. AS 06.55.990(15) is amended to read: 26 (15) "money transmission" 27 (A) means 28 (i) selling or issuing payment instruments or stored 29 value, or receiving money or monetary value for transmission; or 30 (ii) operating a virtual currency kiosk; 31 (B) [, BUT] does not include the provision solely of delivery,
01 online services, telecommunications services, or network access; 02 * Sec. 4. This Act takes effect July 1, 2026.