Need Bitcoins? This ATM takes dollars and funds your account

02-23-2013 • Cnet

NASHUA, N.H. -- Zach Harvey has an ambitious plan to accelerate adoption of the Internet's favorite alternative currency: installing in thousands of bars, restaurants, and grocery stores ATMs that will let you buy Bitcoins anonymously. It's the opposite of a traditional automated teller that dispenses currency. Instead, these Bitcoin ATMs will accept dollar bills -- using the same validation mechanism as vending machines -- and instantly convert the amount to Bitcoins and deposit the result in your account. "It's even easier than just using a regular ATM," says Harvey, 33, who demonstrated the device to CNET this weekend at the Free State Project's annual Liberty Forum. "You could probably do it in about five seconds. The thing that would take the longest would be the bill validator taking in the dollar." Harvey and Matt Whitlock are partners in a New Hampshire-based venture, Lamassu Bitcoin Advisors, that's hoping to commercialize the ATM by selling to retail businesses, especially

1 Comments in Response to Need Bitcoins? This ATM takes dollars and funds your account

Comment by PureTrust

Entered on: 2/25/2013 9:27:57 AM

Great idea! But be wary of State laws. BitInstant of https://bitinstant.com/ wanted to do all kinds of things when they started. Something like this was probably one of them. But the hassles with State laws made it virtually impossible to do most of the things that they wanted to do. Check the State laws in detail.

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