First Bitcoin ATM in the world will go live next week in Vancouver,Canada operated by Nevada-based Robocoin and Vancouver’s Bitcoiniacs.
Mitchell Demeter, co-founder of Vancouver bitcoin trading company Bitcoiniacs and part-owner of Robocoin, has invested in five such machines to be placed across Canada.
Bitcoins are an emerging digital currency that isn’t controlled by any authority such as a central bank.
The new ATM, to operate near downtown Vancouver coffee house Waves, will trade Canadian dollars for online Bitcoins. Users are required to do a palm scan and are permitted to exchange up to $3,000 per a day
The palm scan is to limit people to less than $3,000 worth of transactions, and avoid tangling with Canada’s anti-money-laundering laws, says Demeter.
What is BitCoin?
Bitcoin is a distributed peer-to-peer digital currency that functions without the intermediation of any central authority. The concept was introduced in a 2008 paper by a pseudonymous developer known only as “Satoshi Nakamoto”
Bitcoin is called a cryptocurrency since it uses cryptography to prevent double-spending, a significant challenge inherent to digital currencies.
FBI shut down one Silk Road, which allowed the sale of illegal drugs for bitcoins. However, bitcoins are increasingly used as payment for legitimate products and services. Notable vendors include WordPress, OkCupid, Reddit, and Chinese Internet giant Baidu.
