Blue Ridge Bank is making history as the first commercial bank to allow its customers to buy and sell Bitcoin at its ATM locations.
In a new statement, the Virginia-based commercial bank announces that customers can “purchase and redeem” Bitcoin at 19 ATM locations.
The US bank says it is partnering with Bitcoin ATM software provider LibertyX and BluePoint ATM Solutions to roll out the cryptocurrency feature.
LibertyX Co-Founder & CEO Chris Yim reports that customers have been asking for the ability to buy Bitcoin from conventional cash vending machines for some time now.
“For years, consumers have been asking for the ability to buy bitcoin from their banks. We are proud that BRB is the first bank in the nation to offer bitcoin services on their ATMs.”
To access Blue Ridge’s ATM Bitcoin feature, interested users will need to install the LibertyX app on their smartphones. The cash vending machines will be available for use by anyone with an accepted ATM card, regardless of the issuing bank. Other regular ATM services will continue as usual.
BluePoint ATM Solutions CEO Wade Zirkle expects more traditional financial institutions to follow Blue Ridge’s lead as demand for these types of fintech services continues to grow.
“We predict that more community banks and credit unions will demand innovative fintech solutions like this at their branches…”
While Blue Ridge is the first US commercial bank to offer Bitcoin access at its ATMs, crypto-only ATMs have been in existence for over seven years. The world’s first Bitcoin ATM started operations in Vancouver, Canada in October 2013.
In the US the total number of Bitcoin ATMs is currently 12,885, the highest number of any country in the world, according to Coin ATM Radar.
Don't Miss a Beat – Subscribe to get email alerts delivered directly to your inboxFeatured Image: Shutterstock/Phoenixns