{ "jurisdiction_id": "US-KY", "jurisdiction": "United States – Kentucky", "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/", "generator": "render_jid v13.3.0", "date_modified": "2026-08-17", "schema_version": "crypto-v2.0.0", "counts": { "modules": 8, "sourced_findings": 17, "source_register": 10 }, "modules": [ { "code": "crypto_licensing", "name": "Crypto Licensing", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#crypto-licensing-crypto-licensing", "standing_position": "Kentucky has no bespoke crypto-exchange or custody licence separate from its general money-transmitter law administered by the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions (KY DFI). HB 701 (2025) carved out explicit statutory exemptions from money-transmitter regulation for self-hosted wallet custody, blockchain node operation and staking activity, but the underlying general MTL statute's exact KRS citation and scope as applied to exchanges/custodians has not been independently verified against primary statutory text in this pass.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "token_classification", "name": "Token Classification", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#token-classification-token-classification", "standing_position": "Kentucky has no bespoke state token taxonomy. HB 701 (2025) statutorily clarifies that mining and staking services are not classified as securities under Kentucky law. Separately, the Kentucky Division of Securities (within KY DFI) has, through enforcement actions predating HB 701, treated certain yield-bearing crypto lending products (e.g., Celsius, BlockFi) as securities under state Blue Sky law. Federal SEC/CFTC characterisation continues to govern token-as-security/commodity status generally (see US federal JID).", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "on_chain_activity_regime", "name": "On-Chain Activity Regime", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#on-chain-activity-regime-on-chain-activity-regime", "standing_position": "Kentucky is one of the more permissive US states for on-chain infrastructure activity: HB 701 (2025) statutorily exempts node operation and staking from money-transmitter licensing and bars local governments from discriminatory ordinances against mining operations, while separate 2021 legislation (SB 255, HB 230) grants tax incentives to large-scale crypto miners.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "stablecoin_regime", "name": "Stablecoin Regime", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#stablecoin-regime-stablecoin-regime", "standing_position": "Kentucky has no bespoke state stablecoin-issuance statute. Stablecoin issuance is governed at the federal level by the GENIUS Act (2025), which, prior to full implementation, recognizes state-regulated money transmitters and state-regulated trust companies (categories into which a KY-licensed entity could potentially fall) as eligible payment-stablecoin issuers; federal implementing rules remain in progress as of mid-2026.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "consumer_protection", "name": "Consumer Protection", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#consumer-protection-consumer-protection", "standing_position": "Kentucky consumer protection in crypto has to date been enforced primarily through securities law actions by the Division of Securities (part of KY DFI) against yield-bearing crypto lending products (Celsius, BlockFi), rather than through a dedicated crypto consumer-protection statute. A pending 2026 bill, HB 380, would establish licensing, transaction limits and consumer-protection requirements for virtual-currency kiosk (crypto ATM) operators; a contested floor amendment (Section 33) would additionally require hardware-wallet providers to offer credential-reset mechanisms, which critics argue undermines self-custody protections established by HB 701. As of the dispatch date, HB 380's final enactment status was not confirmed in this pass.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "tax_treatment", "name": "Tax Treatment", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#tax-treatment-tax-treatment", "standing_position": "Kentucky has enacted targeted tax incentives for large-scale crypto mining operations (SB 255 and HB 230, both 2021) but has no confirmed bespoke individual-level crypto capital-gains or income-tax treatment distinct from federal conformity; this latter point was not independently verified against Kentucky Department of Revenue guidance in this pass and is flagged as a research gap.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null }, { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "cross_border_transfer", "name": "Cross-Border Transfer", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#cross-border-transfer-cross-border-transfer", "standing_position": "Kentucky imposes no identified state-specific restriction on outbound or cross-border crypto transfers beyond the federal Bank Secrecy Act framework, including FinCEN's money-transmitter/travel-rule obligations and OFAC sanctions screening, which apply uniformly nationwide to any Kentucky-licensed or Kentucky-based virtual-asset business acting as an exchanger or administrator.", "findings": [ { "finding": null, "instrument_type": null, "source": null, "source_url": null, "source_tier": null, "retrieved_at": null } ] }, { "code": "aml_cft_regime", "name": "AML/CFT Regime", "confidence": null, "moved_this_cycle": false, "url": "https://cryptoassets.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-kentucky/#aml-cft-regime-aml-cft-regime", "standing_position": "AML/CFT obligations applicable to Kentucky-based virtual-asset businesses (KYC/CDD, SAR/STR reporting, sanctions screening, recordkeeping, risk assessment) are governed at the federal level under the Bank Secrecy Act/FinCEN MSB framework and are covered under the crypto consumer's subscription to the FIM aml_ctf module rather than produced natively in this baseline. No Kentucky-specific AML overlay beyond the federal BSA framework was identified in this pass.", "findings": [] } ] }