Germany seizes almost 250,000 euros in cash in crypto ATM sting

(This Aug. 20 story has been corrected to rectify the figure to 250,000, not 25 million, in the headline and paragraph 1)

BERLIN (Reuters) - German authorities have seized almost 250,000 euros ($279,000) in cash in a nationwide operation targeting cryptocurrency ATMs, the country's financial regulator BaFin said in a statement on Tuesday.

Authorities seized 13 machines that had been operating without the necessary permits, posing a risk of money-laundering, according to the regulator.

The ATMs had been used to trade bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and were located in 35 different locations, the statement said.

BaFin worked together with law enforcement and the German Bundesbank to conduct the operation.

($1 = 0.9002 euros)

($1 = 0.8973 euros)

(Writing by Rachel More, editing by Andrey Sychev)