Israel's first Bitcoin ATM has been successfully installed and opened its "doors" to the general public early Sunday evening. This is the latest event in Israel’s rapidly expanding Bitcoin story, which saw Tel Aviv music shop owners, brothers Zack and Josh Harvey, manufacture a pioneering Bitcoin ATM in the US in 2012, going on to found their parent company Lamassu thereafter. The venture proved to be so successful that today the music shop is long gone and the Harvey brothers are reportedly already turning a profit on the machines, which are sold all over the world from Helsinki to Singapore.
Along with the opening of the Bitcoin ATM were Bitcoin enthusiasts, who were there to try and explain to the public why bitcoins are a great thing and how they can use it in their everyday life.
“I am proud that the embassy has made the first bitcoin vending machine available in Israel. This is part of our mission, to make bitcoins accessible to the general public,”Ayal Segev from Bitcoin EmBassy told Jpost. The Bitcoin ATM is owned by a company known as Bits of Gold, who specializes in Bitcoin services for Israelis.
According to Bitcoin EmBassy, hundreds of companies in Israel are already accepting Bitcoins as a payment method and this method is growing rapidly. While Israel is getting used to being able to buy Bitcoins, it is interesting to see how the developers of preexisting entities such as Isracoin will tackle this new obstacle. Surely there must be room for both cryptocurrencies, but can they co-operate together or will they begin to fight each other?
Link: Israel ATM