LibertyX, the firm that launched one of the early Bitcoin ATMs, has just made purchasing Bitcoin in cash possible at more than 20,000 retail locations across the United States.
In a June 22 announcement on LibertyX’s Twitter account, the crypto ATM service company said customers of retailers including 7-Eleven, CVS Pharmacy, and Rite Aid would be able to buy Bitcoin (BTC) with cash.
Users need to have the LibertyX mobile app installed, select which retailer location they will visit in advance, and scan their barcodes at the time of purchase. According to LibertyX, crypto holders can buy between $20-$500—up to 0.052 BTC as of this writing—with transactions processed in minutes for a small fee.
In a press release shared with Cointelegraph, LibertyX Co-founder and CEO Chris Yim said the company expanded crypto purchasing services so customers could buy BTC at familiar locations:
"Now, everyone is only a few miles away from owning bitcoin and becoming part of its global community. Buying bitcoin is as easy as scanning a barcode while shopping for groceries."
Early reactions from crypto community
Crypto traders have already started to take advantage of the new offering. Reddit user notyourcoins reportedly received $99.58 for a $104.95 BTC purchase from 7-Eleven on June 22—$100 for the crypto, and $4.95 for the retailer fee.
Another user, Oracle_of_Knowledge, did the math on the transaction:
“0.01040236 BTC for $100. So $9613.20 per BTC was the price you paid. June 22nd at 9:38 AM Western Time, so for comparison the price on Coinbase Pro exchange at that time was between $9551 and $9570. So that's not even that bad of a spread, you only paid like ~0.5% above "spot" exchange price. Plus the flat $5 ATM fee. Surprisingly not bad.”