Australia Joins Bitcoin ATM Club

Australia has achieved a significant milestone in the world of cryptocurrency, as it now has 1,000 active crypto-fiat machines in operation. This makes Australia the third country, after the United States and Canada, to reach this achievement. The nation currently represents 2.7% of the global Bitcoin ATM network. The United States reached 1,000 crypto ATMs in November 2017, while Canada achieved the same milestone in January 2021. The US currently accounts for 82.8% of global Bitcoin ATMs with 31,170 machines, while Canada has 7.8% with 2,918 machines.

Historically, Australia had been a relatively inactive market for crypto ATMs. This has changed in recent years, with adoption increasing significantly. This is largely due to the involvement of private firms in the sector. In April 2023, Australia surpassed Asia in terms of Bitcoin ATM count. This includes major economies such as China, Japan, Singapore, and India. With the current rate of installations, Australia is on track to surpass Europe, which currently has 4.3% (1,617 machines) of all active Bitcoin ATMs.

Several other countries also have a significant number of crypto ATMs. Spain has 261 machines, El Salvador has 215, Poland has 211, Germany has 194, and Hong Kong has 157. It’s worth noting that El Salvador’s Bitcoin ATM database was recently leaked by hackers, who have now released a portion of the country’s state-operated “Chivo” Bitcoin wallet’s source code. The hacker group known as CiberInteligenciaSV shared this code on a public forum, stating that they do not sell this information but provide it for free. Local cybersecurity project VenariX warned the public about this leak and mentioned the hacker group’s plans to release the source code.