Cryptocurrency ATMs offer people the convenience of either physically cashing out their crypto, or in some cases, buying some right off the street. Their spread represents the growing interest in and acceptance of cryptocurrencies. However, despite their growth, most of these ATMs operate in a way that goes against some of the core principles of the underlying blockchain technology. Existing crypto ATMs are not only rather centralized physically, with nearly 75% located in North America and roughly the other quarter in Europe, but have also been monopolized and are anti-privacy by design. In keeping with core blockchain principles of privacy …

Walmart has partnered with coin-cashing machine company Coinstar and crypto-cash exchange Coinme to install 200 Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs in its stores across the United States. Although the pilot includes only 200 kiosks, the broader launch plans to eventually see the installation of 8,000 Bitcoin ATMs across the country, according to Bloomberg. There have been no further details on timelines as of yet. According to Coin ATM Radar, there are currently over 25,000 Bitcoin ATMs at select grocery stores and service stations in the United States. Coinstar operates 4,400 kiosks enabled for Bitcoin purchases across 33 states. Sam Doctor, chief strategy …

Bitcoin Depot’s cryptocurrency ATM network continues to expand, with North American installations surpassing 5,000 for the first time amid a surge in retail adoption. With the milestone, Bitcoin Depot is once again the largest ATM network in North America, the company announced Thursday. The number of kiosks has tripled in the last six months, giving more users access to cryptocurrency transactions without requiring a bank or other third-party financial services provider. Bitcoin Depot’s partnership with Circle K convenience stores has been a major source of growth for their crypto kiosks. As Cointelegraph reported, the two companies announced in July that …

Kraken Security Labs has said that a “large number” of Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs are vulnerable to hacking, as the administrators never changed the default admin QR code. In a Wednesday blog post, Kraken posted research from its Security Labs team, which found that there are “multiple hardware and software vulnerabilities” in the General Bytes BATMTwo ATM range. “Multiple attack vectors were found through the default administrative QR code, the Android operating software, the ATM management system and even the hardware case of the machine,” the post read. Kraken’s security team stated that if a hacker gets their hands on the …

California has emerged as the most crypto-ready jurisdiction in the United States thanks to the proliferation of cryptocurrency ATMs and growing interest in digital assets among the state’s population, according to new industry research from review site Crypto Head. With a score of 5.72 out of 10, California edged out New Jersey (5.44), Texas (5.28), Florida (5.03) and New York (4.29) in the crypto-ready index. The state’s point total was also 2.54 points higher than the national average. The results were tabulated using metrics such as crypto-related Google searches, the presence of Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrency ATMs, and the …

El Salvador now hosts the third-largest network of crypto ATMs after the United States and Canada, amounting to 70% of all crypto ATMs in South America. According to data from Coin ATM Radar, El Salvador has exceeded United Kingdom’s crypto ATM count after deploying 205 crypto ATMs to date to facilitate local Bitcoin transactions and conversions from Bitcoin (BTC) to U.S. dollars. Comparing this to Statista data from Aug. 16, it becomes evident that El Salvador has successfully installed 201 ATMs in just one month. Beforehand, the country ranked 43rd on the list with just four functional crypto ATMs. President …

Bitcoin detractors and those protesting the policies of El Savador President Nayib Bukele have destroyed a crypto kiosk in the nation’s capital city. News outlet Teleprensa and others posted videos on social media showing a Chivo-supported kiosk in San Salvador burning amid a crowd of journalists and protesters on Wednesday. The Bitcoin (BTC) machine, one of many arranged by the El Salvador government since its acceptance of the cryptocurrency as legal tender in the country, could be seen defaced with anti-BTC logos and a sign saying “democracy is not for sale.” Los manifestantes quemaron el kiosko Chivo como medida de …

Just a week after Bitcoin (BTC) became legal tender in El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele has admitted that the rollout of the state Bitcoin wallet was too much of a challenge. Chivo, El Salvador’s official Bitcoin wallet, has temporarily disabled new registrations and halted app downloads for new smartphone models due to ongoing issues with the app, Bukele said on Twitter late Monday. “Both things will be enabled until the application has no errors,” the president noted, adding that the Chivo team expects to resume registrations and downloads in a couple more days. “The technical errors of the Chivo wallet …

Bitso, a major cryptocurrency exchange in Latin America, will be the core crypto service provider for El Salvador’s official Bitcoin (BTC) wallet, known as Chivo. In conjunction with Bitcoin becoming legal tender in El Salvador, Bitso announced on Tuesday that the firm would assist El Salvador in launching the state-supported BTC wallet alongside companies like Silvergate Bank, digital currency company Athena Bitcoin and blockchain firm Algorand. Silvergate Bank, a California state-chartered commercial bank and a United States Federal Reserve member, will work with Bitso to facilitate U.S. dollar transactions for the Chivo wallet. Athena Bitcoin will provide some front-end services …

TGU Consulting Group, a Honduran company based in the capital of Tegucigalpa, has reportedly installed the country’s first Bitcoin ATM. According to a Friday Reuters report, TGU chief executive Juan Mayen led the move to install the Bitcoin (BTC) ATM in one of the capital’s office buildings. The “la bitcoinera” machine allows crypto enthusiasts to purchase BTC and Ether (ETH) using the local fiat currency, lempira, provided they are willing to scan their IDs and disclose certain personal information. Mayen said this was the first automated way to purchase Bitcoin in Honduras, but many software developers had been accepting crypto …

Major Bitcoin (BTC) ATM operators in the United States are joining forces to fight illicit activity related to Bitcoin ATMs. Bitcoin ATM operators DigitalMint and Coinsource have launched the Cryptocurrency Compliance Cooperative (CCC), a new association that aims to establish compliance standards for the Bitcoin ATM industry. The new compliance effort has launched with support from major blockchain analytics firms, such as Chainalysis and Elliptic, among its 15 initial members. The CCC is now encouraging participation from cash-based crypto money services businesses, regulators, financial institutions, as well as non-state and law enforcement agencies. The association specifically targets Bitcoin ATMs to …

Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador and the principal figure behind the country’s adoption of Bitcoin (BTC), said residents will have the opportunity to convert their crypto to fiat immediately after Bitcoin is recognized as legal tender. In a Sunday announcement on Twitter, Bukele said 4.5 million adults in El Salvador would have the option of HODLing their Bitcoin once the country officially accepted the cryptocurrency as legal tender or “withdraw[ing] it in cash at any of the 200 ATMs.” According to the El Salvador president, there will also be 50 branches capable of withdrawing or depositing fiat for …