Contradicting the increasing rate of global Bitcoin (BTC) adoption, physical ATMs dedicated to fiat-crypto conversions are on the decline. In March alone, 3,627 crypto ATMs were removed from the network, bringing the total number of ATMs down to 33,727.
In the decade since the first Bitcoin ATM was launched on October 29, 2013, the net change of cryptocurrency machines installed and removed on a monthly basis has remained positive most of the time, implying that total ATMs of cryptocurrencies around the world was constantly increasing. However, the trend is reversing according to Coin ATM Radar data.
As shown above, net crypto ATM installs declined for four months between September 2022 and March 2023. However, with 3,627 crypto ATMs dropping last month, March 2023 stands out as the month with the largest decline. monthly.
The chart above shows the number of installed Bitcoin machines over time, revealing the sudden drop in total crypto ATMs. The significance of this reduction seems enormous, considering that the highest number of ATMs installed in one month was 2,048, in January 2021.
On the bright side, April broke the three-month downtrend by recording 37 crypto ATM installs on April 1. The current market leaders in manufacturing crypto ATMs are General Bytes, BitAccess, and Genesis Coin.
Related: Bitcoin ATM Maker Shuts Down Cloud Service After User Hot Wallets Compromised
After losing customer funds in a “security incident” in March in which its customers’ hot wallets were accessed, General Bytes has promised to reimburse the losses.
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On March 17 and 18, 2023, GENERAL BYTES experienced a security incident.
We published a statement urging customers to take immediate steps to protect their personal information.
We urge all of our clients to take immediate action to protect their funds and https://t.co/fajc61lcwR…
— GENERAL BYTES (@generalbytes) March 18, 2023
“We have taken immediate steps to prevent further unauthorized access to our systems and are working tirelessly to protect our customers,” General Bytes said in a statement.
