South Africa continues to take strides toward becoming more ingrained with Bitcoin and cryptocurrency. Last month a survey showed a growing number of South Africans adopting cryptocurrency, and now the city of Johannesburg is taking advantage of that, making it easier for crypto enthusiasts to achieve mainstream adoption.
The city will be installing the country’s first cryptocurrency ATM at Northwold Spar by next week. This combines not only one of the region’s largest retailers, but also the country’s arguably richest (and definitely biggest) city.
“It is all awfully exciting. It will take away much the frustration of buying and selling cryptocurrency, and hopefully help make cryptocurrencies mainstream,” said George Neophytou, the overall director of this Northwold Spar and also a crypto enthusiast.
“We are doing everything by the book, we don’t want anything to be done under the cover. If someone gets cryptocurrencies from this ATM, they must know that it is safe to use.”
His goal is for the crypto ATM to help more South Africans join in on the crypto movement, in a time of growing unease and ongoing debate and corruption allegations in southern Africa’s largest country.
The cryptocurrency ATM will feature multiple crypto options, including Bitcoin, Dash, Ethereum, and others all purchasable through cash, without requiring bank accounts.
Neophytou got the idea for the ATM while on a recent trip to Europe. “It’s a different world there,” he said. “Walking around in the streets of Germany you see signs with ‘Bitcoins accepted there’.
This marks the second time a crypto ATM has been installed in the country. The previous attempt was a Bitcoin ATM installed in 2014, and shut down soon after. Cryptocurrency adoption and usage has grown tremendously since then, however, so things may be different this time.
Will this be the first of many cryptocurrency ATMs in South AFrica? And will more African countries join in on the future? Only time will tell.
