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Bitcoin automatic-teller machines are streaming into Australia, making the country the fastest-growing market for the kiosks and stirring questions about the source of demand for the contentious service.
Users of such ATMs can feed in cash to receive crypto in digital wallets or obtain physical notes from token sales. The US accounts for the vast bulk of the market with about 32 000 machines, followed by the roughly 3 000 in Canada, according to data collated by Coin ATM Radar.
Australia is in third spot with nearly 1 200, up from just 73 two years ago, and more are on the way. In an August call with analysts, US-based Bitcoin Depot Inc’s chief executive officer Brandon Mintz said the company has over 200 kiosks in Australia waiting to be deployed pending a regulatory green light.
Coin ATM Radar’s data indicate the recent growth in Australia leads the world. Operators argue the kiosks boost financial inclusion by offering easy access to crypto. Critics flag risks such as money laundering as well as scams that dupe users into losses. The ATMs are banned in the likes of the UK and Singapore, while Germany is in the midst of a crackdown.
North American providers seeking expansion spurred the growth of kiosks in Australia, where most operators have some compliance controls in place, said Angela Ang, senior policy adviser at blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs. Still, Australian authorities have “identified crypto ATMs as a money laundering vulnerability,” she said.
In a statement last year, police outlined the laundering technique: illicit cash is put into an ATM in return for digital assets, which are then spun through many transactions until their origins are nearly impossible to trace. — Moneyweb
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter