El Salvador Now Has The World's Third Largest Crypto ATM Network

Crypto ATMs are now mushrooming in El Salvador. (photo: cashpro)

JAKARTA - El Salvador is now hosting the third-largest crypto ATM network in the world after the United States and Canada. They also provide 70% of all crypto ATMs in South America.

According to data from Coin ATM Radar, El Salvador has surpassed the number of crypto ATMs in the UK after deploying 205 crypto ATMs to date to facilitate local Bitcoin transactions and conversion of BTC to US dollars.

Compared to Statista data from August 16, it is evident that El Salvador has managed to install 201 ATMs in just one month. Previously, the country was ranked 43rd on the list with only four working crypto ATMs.

El Salvador president, Nayib Bukele, previously stated that Bitcoin adoption would initially be supported by a network of 200 ATMs and 50 branches. The government of Salvador has partnered with an in-house cryptocurrency wallet provider called Chivo to power BTC wallets and ATM usage in the country.

Crypto ATM installations are at an all-time high worldwide with 27,664 active machines, and 2,790 new machines added in September. The increase in El Salvador's ATM installation drives is in line with a recent presidential order requiring all businesses to accept payments in Bitcoin. However, merchants still have the option to convert Bitcoin payments to USD before withdrawing their earnings.

While other jurisdictions have yet to decide on a use case for Bitcoin as a primary asset, an average of 63.7 ATMs continues to be installed globally each day. Genesis coin remains the leading crypto ATM producer with a market share of 40.7%, while General Bytes and BitAccess represent 22.7% and 12.7% of the market, respectively.

El Salvador's Bitcoin adoption has seen some resistance from locals, which recently led to the burning of the Chivo-backed Bitcoin machine. Those protesting the adoption of Bitcoin highlight concerns regarding uncertainty, price fluctuations, and lack of exposure to the crypto market.

Chivo Kiosk is the government's first attempt to create an infrastructure for BTC and US dollar conversion. Currently, El Salvador uses Bitcoin and US dollars as legal tender.