Mass adoption is something that a lot of cryptocurrency leaders wanted to have. In fact, Vitalik Buterin prefers mass adoption over the approval of a Bitcoin ETF. And for this reason, the demand for Bitcoin ATMs has grown over the years. With a lot of people today investing in cryptocurrencies, it isn’t surprising that the demand for these ATMs also increased. The number of Bitcoin ATMs has quadrupled in 2017 according to Statista.
In 2013, the very first Bitcoin ATM was set up in Vancouver British Columbia. Just a few years later, we have 3,000 other cryptocurrency ATMs scattered all over the world. Unlike the usual ATM that needs a debit card, these ATMs allow you to get cash in exchange for your cryptocurrencies from Bitcoin to Litecoin.
And now, crypto businesses are looking to set up these crypto ATMs worldwide. Czech company General Bytes claims that it has sold around 1,700 cryptocurrency ATMs in different parts of the world since 2014. EasyBit, on the other hand, that started in 2013 now has developed four models and is selling ATMs in four continents.
But of course, considering the growth of the industry, there are those companies that have sophisticated technology by their side. There is the like of Vault Logic which is deploying what is called a smart ATM that allows users to buy and to sell cryptocurrencies using fiat. It also makes use of an OS that accepts third-party apps.
Currently, Genesis Coin has the market leader position in the industry with a 33% share of the market. It is followed by General Bytes at 26%. However, the market is still quite new. In fact, there are around 9 brand new crypto ATMs all over the world every day. And with this rate, there will be close to 5,000 crypto ATMs worldwide by the end of 2018.
Supporting Bitcoin and Altcoins
According to statistics, over half of the ATMs do support more than just Bitcoin. However, there are more ATMs that support Litecoin than Ethereum. 49% of crypto ATMs offer Litecoin transactions while 32% offer Ethereum. As for the average fee, it does vary from one machine to the next but the average transaction fee is at 8%.
Recognition and Challenges of the Crypto Industry
The reason behind the booming crypto ATM industry today is because of the popularity of cryptocurrencies. In 2017, Bitcoin was able to soar from around $1,000 reaching near $20,000 by December. Unfortunately, Bitcoin and the rest of the other cryptocurrencies are currently bearish. One of the reasons for this is regulatory clarity.
Since the start of the year, many investors were concerned whether or not cryptocurrencies would be banned by different countries. Some countries have hesitations regarding the crypto space mainly because of its possible use to illicit activities and money laundering. However, things are developing slowly in terms of legislation.
The good news is that regulators are quite open when it comes to cryptocurrencies. In fact, the US Securities and Exchange Commission even considered Bitcoin and Ethereum, not as securities. And also, there are rumors regarding the possible approval of Bitcoin ETFs. The need for crypto ATMs is quite high considering that even businesses are now accepting cryptocurrencies.
