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Bitcoin ATMs Increase in Number in Moscow, Russia – Bitcoin News
The number of bitcoin ATMs has been increasing in Russia’s capital and the rest of the country, a press release revealed this week. There is demand for the service as it provides easy access to cryptocurrencies, but not the best exchange rates and still amid regulatory uncertainty.
More crypto-ATMs installed in Russia despite absence of regulations
With growing interest in cryptocurrencies, the number of entities offering automated counter services for digital assets is increasing, Russian business newspaper Kommersant noted in the article. Dozens of bitcoin ATMs (BATMs) are now operating across the country, despite regulatory uncertainty.
Moscow has taken the lead in terms of new installations. Citing one of the companies behind them, Rusbit, the newspaper revealed that 14 new “crypto machines” have appeared in the capital this year, bringing the total across Russia to 52 units. Given Russia’s territory and population, that’s still a relatively small number, but Rusbit expects a peak in 2023.
Most BATMs allow users to purchase one or more coins with cash or a non-cash payment method such as a credit card and then receive the digital money to a crypto wallet. Some also support the sale of cryptocurrency for fiat, but the machines in Russia do not currently offer such cash withdrawals.
Rusbit offers its ATMs for between $1,800 and $3,600 and maintains them for 1% of sales. The company says its business is completely legal regarding the “On Digital Financial Assets” (DFAs) law that came into effect in January last year. The devices share data with the Federal Tax Service just like cash registers and verify the identity of customers, keeping track of their crypto addresses.
However, legal experts interviewed by the publication say bitcoin ATMs are still “in the gray area” when it comes to regulations. The DFA law only partially regulated cryptocurrencies and related activities, while the Russian parliament has not yet reviewed and adopted a more comprehensive bill “On Digital Currency.”
According to Ksenia Petrovets, senior lawyer at the law firm Birch Legal, current legislation does not cover operations for the exchange of digital currency against fiat money or other cryptocurrencies, and these are neither explicitly prohibited nor directly legalized and regulated.
Alexander Sharapov, a lawyer from the KSK Group, pointed out that it is unclear what legal acts will regulate the interaction between the seller and the buyer of the cryptocurrency when it comes to BATM. Pavel Ganin, partner at ATlegal, added that there is also no procedure for the protection of consumer rights.
CEO of defi banking platform Indefibank, Sergey Mendeleev, is concerned that the new bitcoin ATMs could be confiscated by the authorities just like the ones operated by Bbfpro. At the request of Russia’s central bank, the police seized 22 of the company’s machines in 2018.
Nevertheless, the demand for this type of service is there, since it is quite difficult for ordinary Russians to buy coins when they need to find peer-to-peer exchanges, open accounts on English-language platforms and pass know-your-customer (KYC) procedures , noted Roman Kaufman, co-founder of Berezka DAO.
The main disadvantage is the unfavorable exchange rate usually offered by BATM operators, which in Russia is usually 10 to 15% higher than online exchangers. On the other hand, those who just want to try crypto out can use the ATMs to buy a much smaller amount of digital cash compared to trading platforms.
Do you think sanctions limiting Russians’ access to major crypto platforms could result in an increase in bitcoin ATM installations in their country? Tell us in the comments section below.
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