Topic: How to start Your Very own bitcoin ATM business.. (Read 210 times)

Bitcoin ATM installations worldwide is growing so much at a very alarming rate , let me try as much as possible to show you detailed reasons why you/your friend or family member should key into this opportunity of owning a bitcoin ATM or install a bitcoin machine at existing local business .
Also I will put you through the following:
what are the main points to check and decisions to make beforehand?
Where can I locate Bitcoin ATM machines around me?

{you will be shocked , we even have in Nigeria and other places that i was not aware of}
You will also know reasons why bitcoin ATMs are still the best way to get bitcoins


Are you aware that in a remarkably frank talk at a Bank of England conference, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund

{Christine Lagarde–a Paris native who has held her position at the IMF since 2011}has speculated that Bitcoin and cryptocurrency have as much of a future as the Internet itself. It could displace central banks, conventional banking, and challenge the monopoly of national monies.

In a lecture of recent she chastised her colleagues for failing to embrace the future, she warned that "Not so long ago, some experts argued that personal computers would never be adopted, and that tablets would only be used as expensive coffee trays. So I think it may not be wise to dismiss virtual currencies."

Let us start with virtual currencies. To be clear, this is not about digital payments in existing currencies—through Paypal and other “e-money” providers such as Alipay in China, or M-Pesa in Kenya.

Virtual currencies are in a different category, because they provide their own unit of account and payment systems. These systems allow for peer-to-peer transactions without central clearinghouses, without central banks.

For now, virtual currencies such as Bitcoin pose little or no challenge to the existing order of fiat currencies and central banks. Why? Because they are too volatile, too risky, too energy intensive, and because the underlying technologies are not yet scalable. Many are too opaque for regulators; and some have been hacked.

But many of these are technological challenges that could be addressed over time.

Now Back to Bitcoin ATM Business ...
World's first bitcoin ATM opens in Vancouver

Bitcoiniacs's kiosk dispenses digital currency from Waves Coffee House
CBC News Posted: Oct 29, 2013 11:59 AM ET Last Updated: Oct 29, 2013 8:59 PM ET

At the moment there are about 240 Bitcoin ATMs worldwide. And this happened wetin few years . However, many people compare this to standard bank ATMs, mentioning there are more than 2 million available worldwide today.

Our answer would be: “Yes, and what?” How is it at all can be compared, when bank ATMs are there for more than 40 years now, and here we are talking about totally new concept of digital currency that appeared 5 years ago, and about Bitcoin ATMs that started appearing yesterday .
Here are the main points to check and decisions to make before you start Your Very own bitcoin ATM business


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Regulation

With all the recent developments in Bitcoin area over last couple of years one thing became more prominent — regulation. Bitcoin ATM business is not an exception. In many jurisdictions you need to get special licenses in order to conduct such a business. Running a bitcoin ATM without complying with law might end up bad. So the main point to start investigating in case you would like to run a bitcoin ATM — is the legal framework for such activities in your own region , Legal framework really depends on your location, so consult with a local lawyer that knows his/her job first.
While running a bitcoin ATM on your own might require a lot of investment in legal field, e.g. creating your KYC/AML compliance policy, obtaining proper legal licenses, there is still a legal short cut — find existing bitcoin ATM operator in your area, approach and suggest a collaboration, so that you work under their legal licenses umbrella. In order to find operators around you{don't worry i will assist you with the locations of bitcoin ATM around you.}
Bank relationships

In order to operate a bitcoin ATM you need to have a bank account. There were some ideas to build an “unbanked” bitcoin ATM, however,Though it sounds tempting , but not practical nowadays (there are some bitcoin machines with bill recyclers, but no special software available which will dynamically define the buy/sell prices based on cash/bitcoin balances, also local demand is limited, and bitcoin ATM has a very small user-base compared to online services accessible everywhere, which might result in wrong price discovery at particular machine).

By having a buy only bitcoin machine — you definitely will need to organize cash delivery to the bank, and make wire transfers from bank account to exchange in order to replenish bitcoin balance. The reality is that not many banks wish to have customers related to any “bitcoin business”. So it is good to check available options in advance and the best practice to have several relationships to eliminate the potential risk of closing account by one bank. As an example, the bitcoin ATM operator in New Zealand had to close his business due to lack support from bank sector, although the company was compliant with all legal requirements.so please do your home work very well.
Location

Placing a bitcoin ATM might increase foot-traffic to your store and this is additional revenue stream for the shop. According to information from other owners who installed a bitcoin ATM, it can increase sales up to 10-30% because of new customers, who come to use a bitcoin ATM.

If you are a local business owner who wants to have a bitcoin ATM, but doesn’t want to have all the hassle with running a machine — you can also approach operators close to you and suggest your location. From private discussions with operators — it is always hard to find a good bitcoin-friendly location, so highly probable you can find someone who will put a bitcoin ATM in your store.

However, if you plan to run a bitcoin ATM yourself, you need to find a good location for it. Important factors to consider are: traffic volume, availability/accessibility (easy way to find, public location), open hours (the longer the better), business type.

Here is the list of top 5 bitcoin ATM location types according to the stats we collect on the site:

Restaurant/pizzeria 12%
Cafe/coffee shop/gelateria – 9%
BTC embassy / company office – 7%
Shopping mall – 7%
Supermarket / food store / Deli – 6%

So all are mostly high-traffic businesses, where people go daily.
Bitcoin ATM type

The next question is which bitcoin ATM type to chose. There are broad categories like one-way or two-way, for example. So if you would like not only to allow customers to buy bitcoins, but also sell bitcoins then you need to look for a more expensive two-way solutions. According to the number of installations worldwide — 42% of all bitcoin machines are two-way, and 58% are one-way only.

Here is a list of top bitcoin ATM providers on the market at the moment, which can be recommend. All of the providers have a long tracked positive history on the market:
Lamassu


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— provides one-way solution Douro ($6.5K), additionally Santo Tirso stand can be purchased to make it two-way for $5.5K making the total cost of two-way Lamassu solution of $12K.
Genesis Coin — provides one-way solution Satoshi1 for $6.8K and a two-way Satoshi2 machine for $2.1K on top of one-way price. There is also old Genesis1 for $14.5K.
BitAccess


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— provides a two-way bitcoin ATM machine for $7K.
General Bytes

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— provides a one-way bitcoin ATM called BATMTwo for 2849 USD and two-way bitcoin ATM BATMThreeL (basic version) for $7K.
BitXatm


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— provides a two-way solution on the market for EUR 4.6K.

Price-wise the cheapest are General Bytes for one-way solution and BitXatm for two-way machine. However, the features may vary and it is really required to look at all options to choose a proper one that will fit your needs.
Robocoin and
Skyhook

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although Robocoin and Skyhook have a substantial number of installations worldwide are no more recommended due to business risks associated with the companies behind so i still recomind a #DYR {Do Your Own Research}
Volume and Fee size

In order to start new business one needs to do profitability calculation in advance and have at least rough business plan. i will add a Bitcoin ATM profitability calculator to the list so that things move on well, by using this Bitcoin ATM profitability calculator one can easily define approximate costs and calculate ROI with detailed report.

For those really interested in this kindly let me know so i can provide you with all you need plus a guide to both theoretical profitability calculations and real examples of how much volume do bitcoin ATMs bring to operators at different locations.

The following are average metrics on the market (based on discussion with operators):

In order to reach planned volume it takes about 6 months with marketing and advertising of a location. So it is very important to keep machine at the same location. [Edit: based on infromation from operators the standard location volume is usually reached faster — 1-2 months from installation, for details read the article on Revenue, costs and profitability of a bitcoin ATM]
Average normal monthly volume of a bitcoin ATM is about $30K. It may vary, but this figure is quite realistic in our opinion, which can be used as a basis for forecasts starting month 6.
Average bitcoin ATM fees are now at 5.5% for sell operations and 7.5% for buy operations.

So to set it up probably some average values can be used initially. In order to attract users operators might suggest lower rates, sometimes even 0% commission. In this case you need to find a way to buy cheap bitcoins, e.g. directly from miners with discount,this will greatly enhance your turn over.
Flawless customer support services

When you run a bitcoin ATM it is very important to provide best services to customers. Operator has to monitor whether machine is operational and bitcoin funds are in place etc. Negative publicity spreads pretty quickly.

Both email and phone should be provided on the machine. I recommend to make it available also on your site’s listing.

Recently implemented bitcoin ATM voting functionality allows to track customers’ feedback. As an operator you can place a printed QR with link to your machine listing on our site (check link on bitcoin ATM page) in order to gather more reviews and monitor status of the machine closely.

the above are the main questions one needs to investigate and answer before running a bitcoin ATM. If you have something we missed — please kindly write in comments and and others that know about this this will share their experience with us all ,you know we all learn everyday.

If you ask me,i will say that most of us know that there are way too much friction to getting your first Bitcoin, so here’s reasons why I think Bitcoin ATMs are still one of the best ways to get yours without stress but lets talk about how to buy bitcoins at a bitcoin ATM

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First off ,let me shade some light on How to buy bitcoins at a bitcoin ATM


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though there are more than 6 different mostly installed bitcoin ATMs in the world and two more types, which were popular before and now are rarely used
{Skyhook and Robocoin}

below are the list of some that are largely used
You can see there pictures above as i have already talked about the prices and some of their properties with pictures of each of the BITCOIN ATM TYPE.

Genesis1 machine from Genesis Coin
Satoshi1 or Satoshi2 machine from Genesis Coin
Lamassu
General Bytes BATMTwo (one-way)
General Bytes BATMThree (two-way)
BitAccess
Skyhook
Robocoin

But there is a general buy process at all bitcoin ATMs:
Verification step (optional and may vary substantially depending on machine’s type)
Provide bitcoin address for deposit (optionally can be generated and printed/emailed at some ATMs on the fly, but better to have your own with you before using a machine)
Insert cash into the ATM
Confirm operation (bitcoins sent to your bitcoin address at this moment)

This process may vary from ATM to ATM, and this is what we describe for every of the mentioned above bitcoin ATM types. It is important to understand that even when machine’s software/hardware support compliance procedures, they are not necessarily activated, as it depends on the operator choice of every particular machine. That is why the same type of machine might have different verification and limits set up ,so i may need to know the exact type in your location so if you were unable to make use of this i will give you the steps of the exact one you request,
but this is one example:
Genesis1 bitcoin machine (Genesis Coin)

Genesis1

San-Diego based company Genesis Coin produces three types of ATMs: Genesis1 (two-way), Satoshi1 (one-way) and Satoshi2 (two-way). The process of purchasing bitcoins may have a verification procedure, in this case:

Click “Buy Bitcoins”
Provide mobile number
Enter received validation code
Scan fingerprint
Select coin (this type of machine may support not only Bitcoin, but also Litecoin, Dogecoin, Blackcoin, XCurrency)
Choose to scan wallet (pre-defined) or generate new
Scan wallet QR code if chosen
Insert cash bills
Click send
Get printed receipt

The process is demonstrated on the video below :


Reasons why bitcoin ATMs are still the best way to get bitcoins without stress
Familiarity/Rest of Mind

Crypto newbies that are looking for a way to buy Bitcoin for the first time will likely stick with what they are familiar with. Although Bitcoin ATMs are nothing like regular ATMs, the basic interface is somewhat similar. A human walks up to a machine and interacts with a screen to deposit or withdrawal money of some sort. People don’t want to get all caught in some sort of weird hassle where they have to fill out extensive forms or meet obscure people in sketchy places or attach bank account to online exchanges. People want to go put $25 into a machine that is similar to machines they already know and get some of “this Bitcoin thing”. Bitcoin ATMs are a great face for the first time Bitcoin buyer all the way to the seasoned cypherpunks simply for their very familiar interface.
Usability

The ability to turn cash into Bitcoin in only a few taps on a tablet screen is an amazing thing. People tend to like this sort of simplicity because it doesn’t take much effort to get the coins. I have now used several different types of Bitcoin ATMs and they are without a doubt the easiest way that I have ever used to acquire bitcoin. The more the Bitcoin community around the world reduces the friction to acquire coins, the sooner we will see mainstream acceptance. Do whatever you can to make bitcoin more usable easily .

Speed

Buying from online exchanges like Coinbase Takes time and Circle claims to offer instant purchases but several stories have emerged that would state otherwise. If you want to avoid bank accounts, the long waits and suspect claims put out by exchanges, the Bitcoin ATM is a great place to go. The near friction-less experience of buying through an ATM is one of it’s greatest features.
Tangibility

In order to buy Bitcoin at an ATM, you will need some sort of tangible wallet to store them with. Some Bitcoin ATMs even offer the ability to print out a paper wallet and have your coins sent their for transfer to another wallet shortly thereafter. (This would allow you to buy Bitcoin even if you left your phone at home or something or maybe even give Bitcoin as a gift) Having your own coins safely stored on your own wallet that only you control is a good feeling. And because of the speed of ATMs, they offer a very tangible peace of mind, knowing that you aren’t waiting for your coins for long or waitting for endless hash id /numerous confirmations.
Privacy

When you purchase Bitcoin through an exchange like Circle and Coinbase, you not only let the exchange know that you are buying Bitcoin, but you are also letting your bank know that you are spending your money on Bitcoin. If you are trying to avoid scrutiny from your bank for buying Bitcoin, a trip to your local Bitcoin ATM could prove to be very handy. You will need cash to Buy bitcoin from your local ATM and nothing is more private than cash.

Inclusivity

If you have a steady job and a bank account with lots of money in it, then you can just create an account with Coinbase or others and transfer money directly from your bank account to buy Bitcoin but what if you are one of the world’s under-banked or even completely unbanked? How do you get Bitcoin if you don’t have a bank account? Well, an ATM might just be one of the best viable options for you since you don’t need much more than some cash and sometimes a cell phone number. These are things that the underbanked and unbanked seem to have pretty easy access to across the globe.
Liquidity

The ability to walk up to a machine with cash in hand and walk away seconds or minutes later with bitcoin is something that appeals to a rather large number of people because of it’s instant liquidity. Waiting for days to get your coins from an exchange means that your liquid assets are tied up in “processing” for days. Keep your assets liquid with a stop off at your local Bitcoin ATM.
Bitcoin ATMs in Lagos, Nigeria and other Locations Worldwide...

I really hope that this post motivates someone to set up one or two Bitcoin ATM machines soon.