Malta Officially Presents The First Two-Way Bitcoin ATM

After the official regulation and acceptance of cryptocurrencies and blockchain laws which set the standards and made Malta the first country to openly legalize cryptocurrencies, the country is in the news again.

This time, the news is linked to the launch of the first two-way Bitcoin ATM that is introduced to the public by the innovative company MoonZebra. Located near the flagship Quicklets offices on the Tower Road in Silema, the Bitcoin ATM is set in an iconic location on the island.

This CryptoATM will let anyone get their hands on crypto in a similar way to how they would get cash. All that a user needs to do is walk to the ATM, deposit fiat cash, input their fiat key and crypto will be sent to the wallet. The process of converting crypto to cash can be done in a similar way. The ATM will also give people the ability to bypass exchanges and in a way, can solve the issue of exchanges being centralized.

For those who haven’t heard about MoonZebra, it is a company that has been founded by Leon Siegmund (a popular digital nomad and Bitcoin maximalist) who has been working behind the scenes towards creating awareness on Bitcoin and the crypto space.

Sigmund talked to CCN and explained the idea behind this new Bitcoin ATM. As he said, even though the machine is not so high-tech, it still invites more people to the world of cryptocurrencies. As he said:

“When I moved to Malta two years ago there was a not much happening regarding bitcoin and decentralized ledger technology. But within just 2 years and thanks to the collaborative effort of many individuals, something very special happened. In the beginning of 2017, I met Jonas Abrahamsson at the Bitcoin Meetup in Gozo and we tried to find something that would be appreciated by the local Bitcoin community in Malta and our first idea was to set up public trash bins on the island. These would be would be digital and would reward usage with tokens – a great idea I have to say but which never came to fruition. Another idea was a Bitcoin ATM. It is very difficult to operate here because banks are very hostile and don’t want to support us but after much blood, sweat and tears, we are happy to launch.”

He also believes that Bitcoin opened a massive potential for commerce in Malta, paving the way for the country to become a global hub for Bitcoin and crypto in general.