CoinFlip is Helping Cryptocurrency ATMs Become Easier and More Common
If you have ever walked into a busy commercial building or a gas station and seen a strange-looking ATM, it was probably a machine for electronic currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum or Litecoin. With a cryptocurrency ATM, you can exchange fiat currency such as U.S. dollars for electronic currency.
The main difference between fiat currency and cryptocurrency is that there are no centralized banks or financial institutions involved in processing payments or maintaining accounts. Cryptocurrencies are based on a blockchain system that automatically updates a ledger of all the transactions that take place and also stores your electronic wallet information to keep track of how much currency is available there.
The blockchain ledger is not kept in a central location but is rather distributed to millions of computers that act as nodes of a worldwide network. It’s basically a massive peer-to-peer system that provides an open-source, decentralized system for buying and selling products or services.
It’s not much different using a cryptocurrency ATM than a regular ATM. Instead of a credit or debit card, you merely need your electronic wallet information to access your funds or buy cryptocurrency. Bitcoin is by far the most common cryptocurrency that you can exchange at these ATMs, but some also provide services for altcoins such as Litecoin or Komodo.
Cryptocurrency ATMs are not nearly as common as fiat ATMs, but the number is growing rapidly. There are currently over 3 million fiat currency ATMs in the world compared to about 3500 Bitcoin ATMs, but thousands are being added every year. To find a cryptocurrency ATM, there are apps and map technologies that can make it easy to locate one. It should also be noted that not all machines allow you to withdraw fiat currency. Machines that only sell are called “one-way” ATMs. If you want to trade cryptocurrency for fiat cash, you would need to look for a “two-way” machine.
One of the most rapidly growing cryptocurrency ATM networks is CoinFlip. This company provides ATMs that trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron, Komodo, Ethereum and Litecoin. There are currently over 100 ATMs distributed across the United States, and they are two-way machines that allow buying and selling of electronic coins. The company also provides services to people who are not located near an ATM.
CoinFlip machines offer people the ability to buy and sell cryptocurrencies without a bank account, and the transactions are carried out quickly. The speed and convenience of these machines are likely to increase the prevalence of cryptocurrency transactions and make trading for profit more accessible to people as a source of income.
The CEO of CoinFlip is Daniel Polotsky. He co-founded the company with people he knew in high school and at work. They are a young team comprised of people in their 20s. Daniel says he got the idea for the business when he used a Bitcoin ATM near Wrigley Field in Chicago. The experience was not user-friendly, and he realized that he could improve on the technology and gain market share.
Some of the biggest challenges that CoinFlip faces are the shaky ground of the legal landscape in cryptocurrencies, the cash needed to fill the kiosks and the 95% uptime goal for the network. Polotsky believes the ATMs will have a big impact on industries such as cloud storage, healthcare, financial markets and transportation.
