Australia is seeing unprecedented growth in the number of cryptocurrency ATMs. According to Coin ATM Radar, two years ago, in August 2022, there were just 67 machines in the country, and now there are 1,162.
According to Brandon Mintz, CEO of the US-based Bitcoin Depot Inc., more than 200 more devices are awaiting approval for installation.
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Blockchain analytics company TRM Labs said Australia is seeing a boom in crypto ATMs, which has become the “most significant expansion of the cash-to-cryptocurrency industry in recent years.”
However, Australia accounts for only 3% of the global cryptocurrency ATM market. The United States has the most devices — 31,877 (more than 82% of the market). In second place is Canada with 3,004 ATMs (7.8%). Australia currently ranks third.
The sharp, 17-fold, increase in the number of ATMs could not go unnoticed by the country's law enforcement agencies. Australian authorities have calculated that since 2019, fraudsters have carried out illegal transactions worth $160 million through these devices.
To combat money laundering, some countries have begun confiscating crypto ATMs. Last week, 13 devices were seized in Germany. Last year, 26 ATMs in the UK suffered the same fate.