[2016-10-03] Bitcoin ATMs Are Popping Up in Great Numbers Across the US

[tyz]

Bitcoin ATMs Are Popping Up in Great Numbers Across the US

Since the beginning of the summer, there’s been an influx of Bitcoin ATMs (or “BTMs”) installed across the US. The past few months saw almost 20 new machines appear. The EasyBit BTM network announced it has installed six new machines across four states. Headquartered in the US and Argentina, EasyBit has been gaining steam. The firm’s installed its first BTM at a Thai restaurant in Amsterdam. Now, the company operates 35 machines in nine countries. EasyBit uses both GenesisCoin and BitAccess cryptocurrency automated tellers.

https://news.bitcoin.com/btms-popping-great-number-us/

[Vitnasant]

"Another Bitcoin-based ATM operator is a growing US company called Athena Bitcoin. The Chicago-based company, launched seven new BTMs this past September.

Athena Bitcoin has also ramped up its efforts to be a top Bitcoin provider across the US These days, it has seven new machines located in Texas, Illinois, Georgia, and Florida — and the team operates a total of 25 BTMs.

Last June, the company acquired Bitcoin company BitQuick after its founder Jad Mubaslat began searching for a new custodian. Alongside the acquisition of BitQuick, Athena Bitcoin launched its own bitcoin wallet, available on Google Play and Apple’s App Store. Athena Bitcoin says they are firm believers in Bitcoin and the surrounding ecosystem.

“Athena Bitcoin customers come from far and wide to get to our Bitcoin ATM. We have the most locations and the best hours. Our customers are building businesses, crossing boundaries, and accessing world markets,” said Athena Bitcoin Executive Eric Gravengaard.

Coinsource Focuses On Being America’s Top BTM Operator

Coinsource Last but not least is Coinsource, the biggest BTM provider in the US. The Dallas-based firm, founded in 2015, has a total of 42 machines across seven states. This past August the company added four more machines to its roster in New York, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.

Coinsource aims to expand further and believes it is currently the most geographically diverse ATM network operating in America. According to CoinATMRadar.com, the company now encompasses 11% of the US BTM market. Coinsource uses machines manufactured by GenesisCoin and plans to implement more two-way BTMs in the future. This August, when the company added its four new machines, CEO Sheffield Clark stated: 

From the beginning, our team wanted to solve the access problem for Bitcoin. Today, millions of consumers across the United States can find reliable, safe, instant access to a compliant Coinsource Bitcoin ATM nearby.
bitcoin atm US

Bitcoin ATMs Are Growing Fast, But Will They Last?

The Bitcoin ATM infrastructure is growing quite rapidly with 795 machines worldwide, according to CoinATMRadar. Not surprisingly, the US has a significant share of those machines. These three companies’ primary focus is to continue pushing Bitcoin-based automated tellers in all states.

However, there are people within the cryptocurrency community who believe automated tellers and Bitcoin-based debit cards are too old-fashioned for this emerging technology. In 2015, Andreas Antonopoulos spoke to a small group at Harvard’s i-lab and told attendees he would personally design them differently.

Antonopoulos’ vision is fairly different: he explained machines should primarily operate in Spanish, and they would be more helpful with a live person running the BTM.

Operators and manufacturers believe they are stepping in the right direction and this type of BTM business shows no signs of slowing anytime soon. As more Bitcoin-based automated tellers are installed across the US and worldwide, operators believe they are giving people more access to cryptocurrency solutions."