LA Is Home To California's First Bitcoin ATM
California fancies itself a fairly progressive state, so it wouldn't be all that shocking if Bitcoin ATMs littered the length of the location of the west coast within the next few years. For now, however, there are just two and they exist in the Los Angeles area. They're managed by ExpressCoin, a Bitcoin payment processor based out of Santa Monica.
You can find one of them at 5825 Franklin Avenue in Hollywood and the other at 701 Lincoln Blvd. in Venice. Both ATMs are worth $15,000 and were built by Robocoin out of Las Vegas.
Image Source: US Finance Post
Bitcoin ATMs are a rare breed at this early stage, though gaining momentum. According to Coin ATM Radar, there are only 132 Bitcoin ATMs in the entire world. Here in the U.S., there are about a dozen Bitcoin ATMs, the first of which was launched in Texas.
These are not like ordinary ATMs, either. It's a longer process that involves scanning your palm and entering an email address, among other hoops.
Bitcoin currency has exploded in popularity in part because of its anonymous nature, though its rapid rise in value has attracted a larger audience as well. Consider that the price of a Bitcoin in February 2011 was a single dollar, versus upwards of $1,000 in January of this year. The current value is around $600 and seems to be holding fairly steady.
Well now, this is embarrassing. Apparently these Bitcoin ATMs aren't the first to appear in California. That distinction belongs to Coinage, as company President and Sole Founder Cary Peters alerted us in an email. Peters opened California's first Bitcoin ATM in Mountain View on April 1, 2014. Check it out below:
You can find one of them at 5825 Franklin Avenue in Hollywood and the other at 701 Lincoln Blvd. in Venice. Both ATMs are worth $15,000 and were built by Robocoin out of Las Vegas.
Image Source: US Finance Post
Bitcoin ATMs are a rare breed at this early stage, though gaining momentum. According to Coin ATM Radar, there are only 132 Bitcoin ATMs in the entire world. Here in the U.S., there are about a dozen Bitcoin ATMs, the first of which was launched in Texas.
These are not like ordinary ATMs, either. It's a longer process that involves scanning your palm and entering an email address, among other hoops.
Bitcoin currency has exploded in popularity in part because of its anonymous nature, though its rapid rise in value has attracted a larger audience as well. Consider that the price of a Bitcoin in February 2011 was a single dollar, versus upwards of $1,000 in January of this year. The current value is around $600 and seems to be holding fairly steady.
UPDATE
Well now, this is embarrassing. Apparently these Bitcoin ATMs aren't the first to appear in California. That distinction belongs to Coinage, as company President and Sole Founder Cary Peters alerted us in an email. Peters opened California's first Bitcoin ATM in Mountain View on April 1, 2014. Check it out below:
