|
Title: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: _smudger_ on July 04, 2014, 11:46:14 AM 4000 ATMs is pretty impressive!
https://coinreport.net/btcu-biz-launched-4000-bitcoin-atms-ukraine/ Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: LiteCoinGuy on July 04, 2014, 12:31:51 PM the beauty of such systems like bitcoin is, that you never know how many people are working on stuff like that (for bitcoin) :D
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Paashaas on July 04, 2014, 12:56:05 PM I thought 4 ATM's was much to deploy but 4000.. is just mindblowing.
If this is really true, then the BTC ATM market is exploding :) Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: guybrushthreepwood on July 04, 2014, 01:09:35 PM 4000 seems a bit too much, especially for a country like Ukraine. Are these definitly ATMs and not just perhaps some other service that has implemented bitcoin like zip-zap did. 4000 ATMs just doesn't seem right.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: yayayo on July 04, 2014, 01:23:43 PM 4000 seems a bit too much, especially for a country like Ukraine. Are these definitly ATMs and not just perhaps some other service that has implemented bitcoin like zip-zap did. 4000 ATMs just doesn't seem right. I don't believe this neither without further proof. It just doesn't seem credible. Who would be willing to take the risk to invest in 4000 ATMs to deploy them in a country that is in a state of civil war? How reliable is this Ukranian news source 'Habrahabr' (sorry, but sounds like 'Abracadabra' to me... ;D)? Maybe, just maybe these are regular ATMs/service terminals that can also be used to purchase BTC. ya.ya.yo! Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Velkro on July 04, 2014, 01:27:49 PM the beauty of such systems like bitcoin is, that you never know how many people are working on stuff like that (for bitcoin) :D agree, whole world currency, whole world projects :), keep it up guysTitle: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: zimmah on July 04, 2014, 01:35:33 PM The article says they did not place new devices but just updated the software on regular ATMs to support bitcoin.
In this way it's easy to have 4000 bitcoin ATMs because they were already in place. And it makes sense to just update the software for all ATMs at once. Ukraine is also very no stable at the moment, so many people could see bitcoin as a safer currency than whatever they use in Ukraine. This could be a good thing for bitcoin, especially if merchants start to accept bitcoin now. It just that I don't want to risk visiting Ukraine (I don't think it's safe there) otherwise I would have personally went there to try and make merchants accept bitcoin. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: yayayo on July 04, 2014, 01:46:29 PM The article says they did not place new devices but just updated the software on regular ATMs to support bitcoin. In this way it's easy to have 4000 bitcoin ATMs because they were already in place. And it makes sense to just update the software for all ATMs at once. That would be much more credible. But I can't find that statement in the CoinReport-Article. If it's stated in the original and CoinReport doesn't mention it, then CoinReport is a sensationalist news source to avoid. I think we all like to hear positive news on Bitcoin. But such unrealistical reporting is clearly not in the community's interest. ya.ya.yo! Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: silvercane on July 04, 2014, 01:47:14 PM the beauty of such systems like bitcoin is, that you never know how many people are working on stuff like that (for bitcoin) :D Exactly, which brings the element of surprise as to what might be coming out and when next! Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: unexecuted on July 07, 2014, 08:30:24 AM Apparently these are bill payment terminals used for accepting payment for a multitude of services. BTCU.biz is one of the services provided on these terminals.
http://bnk.ua/en/payment-terminals/ Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Paashaas on July 08, 2014, 05:08:33 PM at Coindesk
http://www.coindesk.com/5000-terminals-across-ukraine-now-offer-bitcoin-cash/ Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: infested999 on July 08, 2014, 05:18:12 PM It seems that the National Bank of Ukraine deployed some ATMs and while they were doing that they added BTC exchanging as a functionality of the ATM. This is how they were able to deploy this huge amount.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: negafen on July 08, 2014, 05:22:01 PM How did the ATM operator manage to send so much money out of the country?
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: trout on July 08, 2014, 06:16:21 PM Quote The trick is that the Bitcoin ATMs aren’t just Bitcoin ATMs. They’re actually conventional ATMs owned by the “National Credit” Bank of Ukraine which have had their software updated to support BTC transactions. By partnering with a popular bank and leveraging existing infrastructure, BTCU.biz was able to leapfrog ahead of many of the dedicated Bitcoin ATM companies, without having to personally raise the capital necessary to put that many machines on street corners. The machines sell BTC at a rate of $693 per Bitcoin, $45 above the current CoinMarketCap price of $648, a transaction fee of about 7%, which is on the high side, but may well be worth it for the convenience. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: bluemeanie1 on July 08, 2014, 06:22:46 PM 4000 ATMs is pretty impressive! https://coinreport.net/btcu-biz-launched-4000-bitcoin-atms-ukraine/ want to point out here this has some very interesting implications. The bank behind the mysterious BTCU (https://btcu.biz/) is none other than PJSC (http://bnk.ua/en/home/), which has a history in the current conflict: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-01-31/guest-post-what-happening-ukraine , this bank is very pro-Europe and pro-West. -bm Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: beetcoin on July 08, 2014, 11:19:37 PM man the cost of implementing 4,000 ATMs in a short amount of time.. is probably a very high risk.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Lauda on July 08, 2014, 11:23:44 PM man the cost of implementing 4,000 ATMs in a short amount of time.. is probably a very high risk. High risk for who?Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: SunBin on July 08, 2014, 11:26:35 PM man the cost of implementing 4,000 ATMs in a short amount of time.. is probably a very high risk. Some posters mention it is just software addition to existing ATM machines. And they charge around 7% premium, so the cost is very low and the potential reward is very high. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: ronskii on July 09, 2014, 12:36:22 AM ATM's with fees like these make Bitcoin saving 3% of the usual credit card fees less relevant.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: theblacksquid on July 09, 2014, 01:15:40 AM ATM's with fees like these make Bitcoin saving 3% of the usual credit card fees less relevant. That is certainly true, but the BTC prices though are a bit above market price. But, I guess that's worth all the exposure BTC will get in the area. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: shmadz on July 09, 2014, 08:45:04 AM Quote “For us, bitcoin is more than a way of transferring money. It is an ideology of free people. [A government's] attitude to bitcoin is a litmus test, it shows the true face of the government. That’s why we support bitcoin,” I think I like this Stanislav guy. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: btcu.biz on July 09, 2014, 02:22:07 PM Guys, thank you very much for criticism and support. I`m a member of The Btcu.biz Team and I`ll be glad to answer all your questions.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: _smudger_ on July 09, 2014, 02:25:02 PM Guys, thank you very much for criticism and support. I`m a member of The Btcu.biz Team and I`ll be glad to answer all your questions. Will you publish the amount of Bitcoin transacted from your ATMs on a daily/weekly/monthly basis? Also how do you know there is demand in Ukraine for this, what research have you done? Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: bitcoiner49er on July 09, 2014, 02:35:47 PM ATM's with fees like these make Bitcoin saving 3% of the usual credit card fees less relevant. Not when your currency has lost 30%, utilities are up 50% and unemployment is going up everyday. Or you are working for zero pay, because you want to keep the job you have in hopes that in the future the company will pay you. Compared to the Ukrainian economy, bitcoin is stable. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: btcu.biz on July 09, 2014, 03:44:52 PM Our project is a start-up of the first water. And I can say it is a research in certain sense. After some period of time some data will be published.
Bitcoin`s price as you know differs seriously from one exchange to another. Sometimes btc-e and bitstamp have up to 2% difference. We use our own rate. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: infested999 on July 09, 2014, 04:07:46 PM Our project is a start-up of the first water. And I can say it is a research in certain sense. After some period of time some data will be published. Bitcoin`s price as you know differs seriously from one exchange to another. Sometimes btc-e and bitstamp have up to 2% difference. We use our own rate. How did you get an agreement with the Ukrainian banks to let you install Bitcoin ATMs. Have you received any problems from currency-regulation laws? For example, the government makes you check the photo identification of all customers. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: negafen on July 09, 2014, 04:18:11 PM Our project is a start-up of the first water. And I can say it is a research in certain sense. After some period of time some data will be published. Bitcoin`s price as you know differs seriously from one exchange to another. Sometimes btc-e and bitstamp have up to 2% difference. We use our own rate. How did you get an agreement with the Ukrainian banks to let you install Bitcoin ATMs. Have you received any problems from currency-regulation laws? For example, the government makes you check the photo identification of all customers. ATM has camera and I assume user already have an account with the bank to use it. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: btcu.biz on July 09, 2014, 04:22:13 PM Bank operates terminals and we are just a "button" on the terminal`s screen. Bank can take money for a company by the agreement. There is no law in Ukraine that forbids using Bitcoin.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: infested999 on July 09, 2014, 05:30:54 PM Bank operates terminals and we are just a "button" on the terminal`s screen. Bank can take money for a company by the agreement. There is no law in Ukraine that forbids using Bitcoin. Did anyone on the team already have experience working with/for a bank to get a chance to make an agreement with the banks? Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: jbreher on July 10, 2014, 07:02:05 PM Guys, thank you very much for criticism and support. I`m a member of The Btcu.biz Team and I`ll be glad to answer all your questions. I would just like to congratulate you for this accomplishment. In my mind, getting in bed with the banks is a long-term negative. But in the immediate term it is certainly worth it to make Bitcoin so pervasive in your market. If it is not considered a trade secret, I would like to suggest you publish a short paper on how you engaged the banks with this idea. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: btcu.biz on July 11, 2014, 09:27:01 AM Some members of our team have banking experience and good reputation. It helped us to establish business relationships with the bank.
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Jamie_Boulder on July 11, 2014, 12:51:12 PM Even though this is quite amazing and adoption is growing I can understand why some people don't see it as a big move for Bitcoins.
BTC are around to rid of the credit card companies, not be used as a tool by them to make even more money from outrageous fees. None the less Bitcoins are free for ANYONE to use even those we dislike :) Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: iflash on July 11, 2014, 01:15:39 PM I think the story is missing a major point: What is the fee of those ATMs?
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: jbreher on July 11, 2014, 04:06:52 PM I think the story is missing a major point: What is the fee of those ATMs? I disagree that this is a major point. The central innovation is turning on thousands of Bitcoin terminals overnight. The fee is a distraction. Those that find value worth the fee will use it, those that do not will not. If not enough use it, the firm will lower the fee in order to induce others to use it, maximizing sales and thereby profits. The market will end up setting the price. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Erdogan on July 11, 2014, 08:25:04 PM btcu.biz: How do you buy the bitcoins you sell on the terminals?
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Kiloday on July 12, 2014, 07:39:54 PM Quote from: Coinreport.net So how did this relatively small Bitcoin startup succeed on this scale? The trick is that the Bitcoin ATMs aren’t just Bitcoin ATMs. They’re actually conventional ATMs owned by the “National Credit” Bank of Ukraine which have had their software updated to support BTC transactions. By partnering with a popular bank and leveraging existing infrastructure, BTCU.biz was able to leapfrog ahead of many of the dedicated Bitcoin ATM companies, without having to personally raise the capital necessary to put that many machines on street corners. So all they did was a software change? Seems a bit too easy. Almost like cheating. Also it's weird to see that a bank was involved in this. I was under the impression that banks hate Bitcoin. Maybe things are a bit different there. I think the story is missing a major point: What is the fee of those ATMs? From the same website as above: Quote from: Coinreport.net The machines sell BTC at a rate of $693 per Bitcoin, $45 above the current CoinMarketCap price of $648, a transaction fee of about 7%, which is on the high side, but may well be worth it for the convenience. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Elwar on July 12, 2014, 09:39:58 PM This is a smart approach that should be attempted wherever the ATM software allows it.
I know my bank has a separate key for buying stamps. Likely an agreement between the bank and the post office to add software to make it easy to buy stamps. I am sure it would be just as easy to create another button for buying bitcoins. Actually easier since I assume the ATM requires special hardware to spit out a stamp. For bitcoins you just need the receipt to have your address and QR code. Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: btcu.biz on November 08, 2014, 08:03:12 AM We are happy to inform you about our new tool. Now you can buy bitcoins at btcu.biz with your plastic card from anywhere in the world. Try it and share your opinions!
Title: Re: How BTCU.biz launched 4000 Bitcoin ATMs in Ukraine Post by: Elwar on November 08, 2014, 11:21:24 AM We are happy to inform you about our new tool. Now you can buy bitcoins at btcu.biz with your plastic card from anywhere in the world. Try it and share your opinions! How do you account for chargebacks? |