Crypto Law Profile
Louisiana’s VCBA requires OFI licensing for covered virtual-currency business activity with Louisiana residents and adds custody, disclosure, examination, enforcement and crypto-kiosk safeguards.
Louisiana’s Virtual Currency Businesses Act is the state’s licensing and conduct framework for covered virtual-currency business activity with or on behalf of Louisiana residents. The statute was enacted as Act No. 341, based on House Bill 701 from the 2020 Regular Session, signed by the governor on June 13, 2020, and effective Aug. 1, 2020. It is codified in Chapter 21 of Title 6 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes, beginning at La. R.S. 6:1381, which gives the chapter its short title.
The Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions, or OFI, administers the regime. OFI states that it began accepting initial license applications through the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System on Jan. 1, 2023, and that after July 1, 2023, persons could no longer engage in virtual-currency business activity in Louisiana without a license. This profile treats the act as in force as of June 5, 2026, while also flagging Act No. 482 of 2026 as a signed, future-effective amendment scheduled for Aug. 1, 2026.
The act defines “virtual currency” as a digital representation of value used as a medium of exchange, unit of account, or store of value, while excluding legal tender, merchant rewards, and closed-loop online game value. “Virtual currency business activity” includes exchanging, transferring, storing, or administering virtual currency, as well as certain electronic precious metals and online-game-value exchange services. Current statutory text excludes mining, non-fungible-token minting, and blockchain activity that does not involve exchange, holding, sale, storage, or transfer of virtual currency to, for, or on behalf of Louisiana residents.
The statute applies to a person “wherever located” that engages in covered activity with or on behalf of a Louisiana resident, unless an exemption applies. Current exemptions include governmental entities, regulated financial institutions, certain payment processors, software and data-security providers, personal or academic use, and several fiduciary or regulated-market contexts.
Current Louisiana law requires license applicants to submit information through NMLS, including business plans, senior-person and control-person information, business history, products and services, expected transaction volume, kiosk locations, financial statements, insurance, surety bond evidence, tangible net worth evidence, and evidence of federal money-services-business registration where required. OFI may investigate the applicant’s financial condition, business experience, character, and general fitness before issuing a license.
The act also sets a capital and bonding layer. Licensees must maintain a surety bond, beginning at $100,000 and scaling with Louisiana virtual-currency business volume, with OFI authority to require a bond up to $7 million. Licensees must also maintain tangible net worth of at least $100,000 or a statutory volume-based amount.
For custody, the statute requires a licensee holding virtual currency for a resident to hold the same type and amount of virtual currency owed to that resident. It also restricts selling, transferring, assigning, lending, hypothecating, pledging, using, or encumbering resident assets except under the resident’s direction, and limits commingling or proprietary use that would prevent resident withdrawal.
The act requires separate, clear and conspicuous disclosures for exchange, transfer, and storage activity. Required risk disclosures include that virtual currency is not legal tender, is not protected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, may be affected by regulatory change, and may involve irreversible transactions, fraud risk, accidental loss, blockchain timing risk, and total loss of value. Transaction disclosures and receipts must also address fees, exchange rates, refund policies, timing, and reversibility.
Enforcement authority includes license suspension or revocation, cease-and-desist orders, receivership, injunctions, civil penalties, security recovery, and conditions on regulated activity. The original act also identified violation grounds including material statutory violations, noncooperation with OFI, unsafe or unsound practices, unfair or deceptive practices, fraud, misappropriation, insolvency, and material misrepresentation.
Louisiana’s kiosk rules were significantly expanded by Act No. 369 of 2025. That act makes persons who own, operate, solicit, market, advertise, or facilitate virtual-currency kiosks in Louisiana subject to the VCBA, including licensure. It also adds a $3,000 daily transaction limit, a 72-hour hold or cancellation-and-refund option, customer warning language, blockchain analytics requirements, anti-fraud policies, and enhanced due diligence policies for at-risk customers.
Act No. 482 of 2026 was signed on May 29, 2026, with an effective date of Aug. 1, 2026. Legislative tracking materials identify it as a further amendment to the VCBA’s kiosk refund, disclosure, and reporting framework. Editors should review the codified Louisiana Revised Statutes after Aug. 1, 2026 before treating those provisions as fully integrated into the current statutory text.
Defines covered activity to include exchange, transfer, storage, administration, electronic precious metals and certain online-game value exchanges.
Bars covered persons from engaging in VC business activity with Louisiana residents unless licensed by OFI or exempt.
Requires NMLS filings, business and financial disclosures, control-person information, fees, bond evidence, net worth evidence and OFI fitness review.
Requires at least a $100,000 surety bond and statutory tangible net worth, with OFI authority to require higher amounts based on risk and volume.
Requires licensees holding resident VC to hold the same type and amount and limits use, encumbrance and commingling of resident assets.
Requires clear disclosures of material VC risks, transaction terms, fees, exchange rates, refund policies, timing and reversibility.
Act 369 subjects kiosk activity to VCBA and adds a $3,000 daily limit, 72-hour hold/cancel/refund option, warning, analytics and anti-fraud policies.
Authorizes examinations, cease-and-desist orders, license suspension or revocation, receivership, injunctions, penalties and conditions.
Original VCBA bill was prefiled in the Louisiana House.
Governor signed HB 701; legislature records Act 341 and Aug. 1, 2020 effective date.
Act 341 took effect as Louisiana’s virtual-currency business licensing statute.
OFI began accepting initial VCBA license applications through NMLS.
SB 185/Act 331 revised definitions, NMLS, capital, asset-protection, reporting, disclosure and enforcement provisions.
OFI says persons could no longer engage in VC business activity in Louisiana without a license after this date.
HB 483/Act 369 added kiosk-specific licensure, transaction, refund, disclosure, blockchain analytics and fraud controls.
Kiosk safeguards including the $3,000 daily limit and 72-hour hold/cancel/refund option took effect.
SB 287 became Act 482, with further kiosk refund, disclosure and reporting amendments effective Aug. 1, 2026.
Louisiana Governor, Louisiana Legislature, Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions, Nationwide Multistate Licensing System
Cryptocurrency, Electronic precious metals, Virtual currency
This profile covers La. R.S. 6:1381 et seq. as enacted by Act 341 of 2020 and amended through Act 369 of 2025, with Act 482 of 2026 flagged as a signed, future-effective kiosk amendment.
