Crypto ATM operator considers $100 million sale, days after founder's $10 million money laundering charge

Crypto ATM operator Crypto Dispensers said on Friday it is considering a $100 million sale offer, mere days after its founder and CEO, Firas Isa, was charged by federal prosecutors in connection with an alleged $10 million money laundering scheme. 

In a press release issued Nov. 21, the company stated it has retained advisors to support a "strategic review" and potential sale. The release highlighted the company's 2020 pivot from physical Bitcoin ATMs to a software-first model, a move the company claimed was designed to address "rising fraud exposure, regulatory pressure, and compliance demands."

Those same issues are central to the criminal case currently facing the firm. 

On Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced that Isa and Virtual Assets LLC, which does business as Crypto Dispensers, were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. As The Block previously reported, the indictment alleges that between 2018 and 2025, Isa knowingly accepted millions of dollars in proceeds from wire fraud and narcotics trafficking through the company’s ATM network.

Prosecutors allege Isa arranged for the illicit funds to be converted into cryptocurrency and transferred to wallets that concealed their source. Isa has pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison if convicted. Isa previously said Crypto Dispensers was "built on compliance from day one" in a statement emailed to The Block. 

In the Friday announcement, Isa did not address the indictment but framed the company’s history as a successful transition away from hardware limitations. "Hardware showed us the ceiling. Software showed us the scale," Isa said in the statement. "This review is about understanding the next stage of growth and determining which path creates the most value for the platform we have built."

Crypto Dispensers did not immediately respond to a request for further comment from The Block regarding how the pending criminal charges might impact a potential sale, and whether or not it has a buyer lined up.