Uruguay has installed the first ever cryptocurrency ATM. This machine was built by Urubit (one of Uruguay’s national crypto companies) and Inbierto (one of Uruguay’s. This milestone is significant for Uruguay which has approximately 40K to 50K crypto-users. The country’s primary source of buying cryptocurrency depends on peer-to–peer markets.
Uruguay enters the Crypto ATM Era
Uruguay’s first crypto ATM has been installed in Punta del Este in the south-east of the country. Two national cryptocurrency companies, Urubit (the founder) and Inbierto (the developer), developed the crypto machine. While the former was focused on software, the latter developed the ATM’s hardware.
Adolfo Varela, Inbierto’s CEO, states that one of the aims of this machine is to create trust in the cryptocurrency market in the country, where most crypto commerce happens in peer-to-peer markets that cannot go through banking due to lack of regulations. The possibility of falling prey to scams is eliminated with a crypto ATM. Varela is positive that they will continue to expand their network of crypto ATMs across the country. He said:
Our plans are to grow in Maldonado and Colonia as well as Montevideo. By the end of this year, we hope to be able to cover the entire national territory. We have been consulted by other countries to make sure we can install it.
Only five cryptocurrency (which includes two national tokens), are supported by the installed crypto ATM: ferret token, urubit and bitcoin; as well as binance currency (BNB) and binance US Dollar (BUSD). Since they use the Binance Smart Chain, (BSC), to make transactions, these companies have not added Ethereum support. Varela explained that Ethereum’s fees would deter users from using the machine, and that’s why BSC integration was opted for instead.
Regulating a gray area in the country
The regulation of cryptocurrency is still a grey area in the country. However, in October 2013, the central banking issued a statement declaring that the assets were legal, not illegal and that citizens may use them without being informed about the potential risks.
The Central Bank of Uruguay issued a December document that outlined a plan for the regulation of crypto assets. It proposed to examine current laws, make amendments to them, and create a virtual asset law which would encompass all of the assets within one project.
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