New Mexico — Bitcoin and virtual-currency law

• Jurisdiction: State of New Mexico (US)
• Date checked: 2026-10-09 (all statuses below were checked on this date unless another date is given)
• Regulator: Financial Institutions Division (FID), Regulation and Licensing Department (RLD)
• Legislature: 60-day sessions in odd years, 30-day budget sessions in even years; the 2026 session ended February 2026; next session January 2027.
• Saved primary sources: sources/states/nm/ (see sources/states/nm/INDEX.md)

At a glance

1. Money-transmitter licensing of virtual currency

• FID "Money Services Businesses" page (saved): "A Money Service Business (MSB) is defined as any company or person engaged in one or more of the following business activities: Electronic Money Transmitting … Virtual currency exchanging and trading services … Each money service business is required to submit an initial application followed by … annual renewal license applications." Licensees are verified through NMLS. [S1]
• Statute: New Mexico's money services law is in NMSA 1978, chapter 58, article 32, indexed as the Uniform Money Services Act (Justia index title seen in search results; the statute text could not be opened — Justia and NMOneSource blocked scripted access). The definitions in § 58-32-102 (e.g., whether "monetary value" covers virtual currency) were not read (gap). [N2]
• MTMA: CSBS lists New Mexico as not having enacted the MTMA. [S3]
• No FID guidance document specific to virtual currency or kiosks was found on its "Statutes, Rules, Guidance, Actions, and Hearings" page (gap).

2. Virtual-currency-specific statutes

• None enacted. Two 2025 bills failed (see section 6). NCSL lists no New Mexico crypto bills in its 2026 tracker. [S4]

3. Crypto ATM / kiosk law

• State: none. Under FID's MSB listing, kiosk operators exchanging virtual currency need an MSB licence. [S1]
• City of Albuquerque — Ordinance O-26-49 (reported 2026-09-11): bans installing, operating or hosting crypto ATMs and cashier-assisted crypto purchases (store staff taking cash for a crypto provider); operators must remove machines within 45 days of the effective date. Councilor Stephanie Telles called kiosks "a conduit for…" crime; a figure that 90% of crypto ATM transactions in Albuquerque are linked to fraud was cited (source of that figure not given — unverified). Mayor Tim Keller signed it (KRQE headline). Council vote date and effective date not found (gap). [N1][N3]

4. Tax treatment

• New Mexico personal income tax starts from federal adjusted gross income, so federal treatment of Bitcoin gains would flow through (general knowledge; unverified).
• No Taxation and Revenue Department publication on cryptocurrency (gross receipts on mining, sales paid in Bitcoin) was found (gap).

5. Notable enforcement

• No New Mexico state crypto enforcement action was found in this check (gap).

6. Pending and recently failed bills

No New Mexico crypto bill was listed for the 2026 session. [S4]

7. Contested and fringe claims (flagged, not endorsed)

• "Bitcoin protects against economic shocks" — this is the legislative finding proposed in SB 275, an advocacy position that did not become law. [S2]
• "90% of Albuquerque crypto ATM transactions are fraud-linked" — cited by city officials; methodology not provided (unverified). Industry groups dispute that most kiosk use is fraudulent (general characterization; no industry source read). [N3]

Sources

Saved full copies are in sources/states/nm/.

• [S1] NM Regulation and Licensing Department, Financial Institutions Division, "Money Services Businesses" page. https://www.rld.nm.gov/financial-institutions/who-we-regulate/money-services-businesses/ — retrieved 2026-10-09 — saved nm-rld-fid-money-services-businesses-page.html
• [S2] NM Legislature, SB 275 (2025), Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, introduced text. https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0275.pdf — saved nm-2025-sb275-strategic-bitcoin-reserve-act-introduced.pdf
• [S3] CSBS, MTMA State Enactments (PDF dated 2026-10-08). https://www.csbs.org/sites/default/files/external-link-files/10.8.26%20MTMA%20State%20Enactments.pdf
• [S4] NCSL, 2024, 2025 and 2026 cryptocurrency legislation pages. https://www.ncsl.org/financial-services/cryptocurrency-digital-or-virtual-currency-and-digital-assets-2025-legislation (and -2024-, -2026-) — read 2026-10-09
• [N1] ATM Marketplace, "Albuquerque bans crypto ATMs," 2026-09-11. https://www.atmmarketplace.com/news/albuquerque-bans-crypto-atms — summary only
• [N2] Justia, "New Mexico Statutes Chapter 58, Article 32 (2025) — Uniform Money…" (index title seen in search results; page blocked). https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/chapter-58/article-32
• [N3] KRQE, "Mayor Keller signs ordinance banning crypto ATMs in Albuquerque" (headline only; 403 on fetch). https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/mayor-keller-signs-ordinance-banning-crypto-atms-in-albuquerque