Wisconsin: Crypto Task Force and Legislation

Task force: ActiveReserve: None foundKiosks: Law

Task force or study body Confirmed

Legislative Council Study Committee on Cryptocurrency (2026 interim) · Active

• Created by: Approved 22-0 by the Joint Legislative Council as part of its 2026 study committee slate (listed in The Wheeler Report's '2026 Study Committees Set'; the page we read gives no date). Members were being appointed by late July 2026.
• Organized by: Wisconsin Joint Legislative Council (Legislative Council staff support).
• Led by: Sen. Rob Stafsholt (R-New Richmond), chair; Rep. Nate Gustafson, vice chair (The Wheeler Report, 2026; undated page, confirmed as chair in an Aug. 18, 2026 news report).
• Members: Ten members in all, two senators and two representatives plus public members, per a DeWitt LLP release: Sen. Stafsholt (chair), Rep. Gustafson (vice chair), Sen. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee), Rep. Taylor, Michael Adam, Michael Bezoian (DeWitt attorney), Jeni Brantner (a Wisconsin Credit Union League release, seen by title only, links her to Royal Credit Union), Ryan T. Kamphuis, Phil Suckow and Adam J. Swanda. We did not confirm the affiliations of the other public members.
• Outputs and timeline: Charge: review crypto staking, in which a third party commits a person's crypto to support blockchain protocols; evaluate whether state securities law should apply or other requirements fit better; recommend legislation; and optionally review other uses of crypto and recommend laws that encourage innovation while protecting the public. First meeting reported Aug. 18, 2026 in Madison, with speakers on scams; Wisconsin DFI told the committee that residents 60 and older lost $46 million to crypto scams in 2025 and that DFI had taken down or disrupted 330 scam websites. The committee plans to meet again in the fall to consider recommendations; no date or final report found as of Nov. 2, 2026.

Sources: The Wheeler Report: 2026 Study Committees Set (roster, chair, vice chair, charge), Spectrum News: Aug. 18, 2026 meeting coverage, Office of Sen. Drake release on her appointment (Jul 27, 2026), DeWitt LLP: attorney Michael Bezoian appointed (Jul 30, 2026)

Leader information is from The Wheeler Report's 2026 listing (undated) and an Aug. 18, 2026 news report. Date of Joint Legislative Council approval is not stated in the sources we read.

Bitcoin or digital asset reserve law None found

We found no Wisconsin bill creating a state bitcoin or digital-asset reserve or authorizing state investment funds (such as the State of Wisconsin Investment Board) to hold crypto in 2025-26. Bitcoin Laws' Wisconsin page lists five crypto-related bills for the session (AB 471, SB 535, AB 245, SB 386, AB 384), none of them a strategic reserve bill. We could not open the Legislature's search tools to run a full text search, so this is a finding from the trackers and searches, not a full legislative check.

Sources: Bitcoin Laws: Wisconsin bill list

Licensing Reported

Wisconsin's Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) licenses money transmitters; its page says 2023 Wisconsin Act 267, signed April 4, 2024 and effective Jan. 1, 2025, repealed the old Seller of Checks law and replaced it with the Model Money Transmission Modernization law (the page still cites Chapter 217 and is internally inconsistent on this point). Virtual currency kiosk operators must be licensed under this law, with kiosk provisions added by 2025 Wisconsin Act 226 (Wis. Stat. s. 217.12). The DFI page also says a company that sells virtual currency for fiat may need a license when the currency goes to a third party's wallet and the company cannot feasibly verify ownership, and that DFI does not issue safe-harbor or no-action letters for these activities. Licensees must file audited financials through NMLS and meet a tangible net worth floor. We could not confirm from the statute text how the law treats other virtual currency activity. A 2025 bill, AB 471 (and SB 535), would have exempted accepting crypto payments, self-custody, running nodes, software development and staking or mining from money transmitter licensing; it was referred to the Assembly Committee on Financial Institutions and we found no further action.

Sources: Wisconsin DFI: money transmitter licensing page (virtual currency, kiosks), Decrypt: AB 471 would exempt crypto activities from money transmitter law (Sep 30, 2025), Bitcoin Laws: AB 471 and SB 535 listings

Crypto kiosks (ATMs) Reported

Assembly Bill 968 became 2025 Wisconsin Act 226, enacted April 8, 2026 and effective April 10, 2026, per Orrick; its customer identification requirements take effect 60 days later (about June 9, 2026). The act's official page could not be opened. Wisconsin DFI's licensing page confirms the act added kiosk provisions at s. 217.12 and that operators must be licensed as money transmitters, and describes a 30-day fraud-reporting refund route. Key terms per Orrick: a $1,000 per customer per day cap; ID collection before a first transaction and verification plus a photograph for later ones; a printed fraud alert on each kiosk and on screen that must be acknowledged; physical and electronic receipts showing terms, fees and exchange rate; full refund including fees if the customer reports fraud to the operator and to law enforcement or a government agency within 30 days; toll-free live customer service during kiosk hours; a written anti-fraud policy; no kiosk within five feet of an ATM; and notice of each kiosk location to local law enforcement. We did not find the enforcement provisions or the bill's authors. Earlier Democratic-sponsored kiosk bills, AB 384 and SB 386, stayed in committee. Wisconsin law enforcement associations praised the signing in an April 13, 2026 release.

Sources: Orrick: Wisconsin enacts regulatory framework for kiosks (Apr 24, 2026), JD Supra copy of Orrick summary (Apr 27, 2026), Wisconsin DFI: money transmitter page citing Act 226, WisPolitics: law enforcement associations on AB 968 signing (Apr 13, 2026), Wisconsin Legislature: AB 384 (2025) kiosk bill history, Official act page (could not be opened)

Industry groups (non-governmental)

• Wisconsin Blockchain Business Council (WBBC): Appears on an event listing for 'WBBC Gather: The WIN Bill & Wisconsin's Blockchain Future' in Madison, with Sen. Dora Drake and bitcoin educator Christopher Perceptions as speakers, presented by Awen and sponsored by Stand With Crypto; the listing does not name an organization behind WBBC and gives no date. We could not confirm its leadership, membership or whether it remains active. It is not among the known North American Blockchain Association members and we found no source saying it has joined.

Sources: Event listing: WBBC Gather on the WIN Bill

Other 2025 to 2026 actions

• 2026-04-08: Gov. Tony Evers signed AB 968 as 2025 Wisconsin Act 226, setting licensing and consumer protections for crypto kiosks (see kiosks section). Wisconsin DFI now directs fraud victims to report to the operator and to DFI or local police within 30 days.
• 2026-02-19: The Assembly passed AB 892 on Feb. 19, 2026 (Rep. Neylon and others; Sen. Cabral-Guevara cosponsoring), a bill on digital asset staking and Wisconsin securities law; the committee vote was 3-2 and the Senate referred it to Utilities, Technology and Tourism on Feb. 27. A Spectrum News report says it failed to pass the Senate before adjournment. Banking trade groups opposed it. The staking issue then became the lead item for the Legislative Council study committee.
• 2026-03-23: SB 951, the 'WIN' bill (Sen. Dora Drake, cosponsored by Rep. Rivera-Wagner), would have created an Office of Financial Technology Innovation in DFI with a cryptocurrency pilot project; it had a Senate hearing on Feb. 25, 2026 and failed to pass on March 23, 2026 under Senate Joint Resolution 1841. Separately, bipartisan AB 471 and SB 535 (2025, digital asset regulation and money transmitter exemptions) sat in committee with no later action found.

Sources: Orrick summary (Apr 24, 2026), Wisconsin Legislature: AB 892 (2025) history, Spectrum News (Aug 18, 2026), noting AB 892 failed in the Senate, WisPolitics: bankers group on staking bill (2026), Wisconsin Legislature: SB 951 (2025) history, Hearing testimony on SB 951 (Feb 25, 2026), Decrypt on AB 471 (Sep 30, 2025)

Source notes: The Legislative Council's own page and the official text of Act 226 could not be opened, so the committee roster, charge and act terms rest on a trade newsletter listing, press coverage and law-firm summaries. Act 226's enforcement provisions and authors are unconfirmed. The study committee had met once (Aug. 18, 2026) as of the latest source; no fall meeting date or report was found. The DFI page contradicts itself on whether Chapter 217 was repealed.