Indiana is set to let public retirement and savings plans gain exposure to bitcoin and other crypto products — while simultaneously moving to shut down crypto ATMs over fraud concerns.
What passed
The state legislature approved HB 1042, which authorizes public retirement and savings plans to invest in digital assets and spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and explicitly preserves residents’ access to crypto investments. Governor Mike Braun is expected to sign the bill into law within about 10 days.
Where Indiana fits in
Indiana joins at least seven other states — including Wyoming, Wisconsin, Michigan and Arizona — that have recently moved to integrate crypto-linked products into public investment frameworks. According to CoinDesk analysis, 21 states are either investing in or evaluating investments in digital assets (primarily bitcoin, BTC $67,971.55) and, in some cases, dollar-pegged stablecoins. Much of the push to consider public exposure to bitcoin accelerated after President Donald Trump directed his administration to establish a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve; several states (Arizona, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Nebraska among them) have since passed legislation opening certain public funds to cryptocurrency purchases.
A parallel crackdown: crypto ATMs banned
On the same day lawmakers advanced HB 1042, they also passed a separate measure banning the operation of virtual currency kiosks — commonly called crypto ATMs — across Indiana. Enforcement would fall to the state attorney general under deceptive consumer sales laws. The measure follows growing law-enforcement warnings about ATM-linked scams: Evansville authorities say residents lost roughly $400,000 to crypto ATM scams in 2025.
Broader fraud backdrop
The statewide ban echoes a string of enforcement actions and lawsuits. Massachusetts’ attorney general has sued ATM operator Bitcoin Depot, alleging its machines enabled criminal scams. The FBI has estimated Americans lost about $240 million to crypto ATM fraud in the first half of 2025 and reported nearly 11,000 crypto ATM fraud complaints in 2024 — a 99% year-over-year rise.
Why it matters
Indiana’s twin approach — opening institutional channels for crypto exposure while clamping down on consumer-facing kiosks — underscores a widening trend among U.S. states: embracing crypto as an asset class for public funds, but seeking to limit high-risk, retail-facing touchpoints amid a surge in fraud complaints.
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