Bitcoin ATM Growth Surges in Australia Following Years of False Starts

Bitcoin automated teller machines in Australia have surged in recent years, with the country now the fastest-growing market in the world.

There were just 73 Bitcoin ATMs in the country in September 2022. That number has since surged to 1,162 installations, according to data from Coin ATM Radar.

It places Australia third in total installs, behind only the U.S. and Canada, whose numbers dwarf that of the island nation, at 31,861 and 3004, respectively.

The U.S. has had around the same number of machines since February 2022 following declining growth, while Canada has added roughly 780 new ATMs over the same period.

The surge in Bitcoin kiosks follows a false start in Australia after the country cracked down on the machines amid a rise in crypto prices in 2019. 

Local crypto exchange Auscoin was first to market several years ago, but its efforts to build a network of ATMs floundered when the financial regulator, AUSTRAC, suspended its license due to alleged links with organized crime.

In April 2022, the regulator cited crypto ATMs as a concern for funding criminal activity in its Preventing The Criminal Abuse Of Digital Currencies report. Bitcoin ATMs are not illegal in Australia, provided they are licensed.

The rapid growth since 2022 stems from overseas companies moving in to fill the void left by Auscoin’s failure.

The current leader is CoinFlip’s network of ATMs, which maintains 700 kiosks across Australia and New Zealand, per Coin ATM Radar.

CoinFlip’s entry to Australia’s market came when it acquired a local player, Layer 8 Networks, in 2022—right around the time that the national ATM network growth began.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair