Australia Becomes 4th Largest Crypto ATM Hub

El Salvador, the first nation to legalize Bitcoin, has dropped another spot in total crypto ATM installations as Australia records 216 ATMs as the year 2023 approaches.

President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador chose to install over 200 crypto ATMs across the country as part of his efforts to establish Bitcoin as a legal tender. While this move elevated the country to the third-largest crypto ATM hub then, trailing only the United States, Canada, Spain, and Australia, surpassing the Central American country's ATM count in 2022.

The country also announced a $150 million trust on August 2022 to help facilitate Bitcoin and US dollar transactions within the country. This trust would ensure that merchants could instantly convert their Bitcoin to cash in order to avoid its volatility.

Spain became the third-largest crypto ATM hub in October 2022 after installing 215 crypto ATMs. However, Spain proceeded with its installation drive and currently has 226 crypto ATMs. El Salvador's position as the fourth-largest crypto hub was brief, as Australia recently improved its game.

According to CoinATMRadar data, Australia deployed 99 crypto ATMs in the last three months of 2022. The country has 219 active crypto ATMs as of January 1, 2023, outnumbering El Salvador by 7 ATMs at the time of writing.

Australia accounts for 0.6% of global crypto ATM installations and, at this rate, is well to surpass Asia's crypto ATM total of 312. The total number of crypto ATMs in the world is 38,602, with 6,071 installed in 2022 alone.

The government of Nigeria was forced to limit ATM cash withdrawals to $225 (100,000 nairas) per week to force the adoption of an in-house central bank digital currency (CBDC) — eNaira.

"Customers should be urged to conduct their banking transactions through multiple channels (internet banking, mobile banking apps, USSD, cards/POS, eNaira, etc.)," said Haruna Mustafa, director of the banking system, in announcing the drive.

How do you think Australia's sudden growth in crypto ATM installations will impact the global market? Drop your comments by sharing this article on social media.