Bitcoinization In Latin America Is Getting Stronger, Saint Blockchain Plants 300 Crypto ATMs In Panama By 2022

Crypto ATMs are increasingly mushrooming in Latin America. (photo: doc. unsplash)

JAKARTA – Panama continues to do its best to keep up with the Bitcoinization of its neighbor, El Salvador. Now the Panamanian government is starting to install 50 Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs in 2022. Thanks to Santo Blockchain, 50 of the planned 300 ATMs will start shipping to Latin America in early 2022.

A vertically integrated blockchain and cryptocurrency company with offices in Saigon, Vietnam and Panama City, Santo Blockchain, will invest a total of US$1 million (Rp14.3 billion) into Latin America in general next year as part of a plan to provide 300 Bitcoin ATMs. .

Santo Blockchain announced Panama will be the first country to benefit from a newly purchased Bitcoin ATM. While the next radar is Colombia and Costa Rica.

Panama has become an increasingly crypto-friendly jurisdiction. In September, a new bill was drafted by their government to recognize BTC as an alternative payment method. This allows for greater freedom in Panama when using cryptocurrencies.

Santo Blockchain CEO Frank Yglesias, who goes by the moniker “Crypto Hemingway,” serves as crypto adviser to Panamanian congressman Alejandro Castillero, who oversees regulation of the new law.

“Santo is on his way to help bring a new wave of crypto banking, investment, and commerce to the more than 400,000,000 people in Latin America who are unbanked or unbanked, including 10% to 15% of Hispanics in the United States. who also doesn't have a bank account," Yglesias said of the 300 ATM deal, as quoted by Cointelegraph.

As part of the plan, Latin Americans using ATMs will be able to buy small amounts of BTC with cash. Santo's business model connects ATMs to a tier two BTC wallet created by the company and finally Santo's debit card–launched in Q3 2022.

In the company's year-end podcast, Yglesias said that Panama is the first Latin American country because it is the gateway to America in terms of trade and logistics, finance and economic stability. Ultimately, Panama is a “stepping stone” for wider Latin American BTC adoption.

This news is welcome on a continent that is lagging behind in Bitcoin's physical infrastructure. Indeed, LATAM has some work to do to keep up with the 5,000 Bitcoin ATMs in North America. To add to the problem, in October this year, retail giant Walmart trialled 200 Bitcoin ATMs as part of a plan to install 8,000 Bitcoin ATMs nationwide.

According to CoinATMRadar figures, North America's Bitcoin ATM tracking site hosts 94.8% of BTC ATMs worldwide; LatAm only owns 0.2%. Unsurprisingly, El Salvador leads the way with 205 ATM locations in the country.

With Santo's plans to introduce 50 new ATMs by 2022, 73 physical BTC locations will be offered in Panama, placing them just below the United Kingdom in the world rankings of Bitcoin ATM providers.