Uruguay reportedly installed its first Bitcoin ATM

Uruguay has reportedly installed its first bitcoin (bitcoin) ATMs, making it the 11th South American country to publicly encourage cryptocurrency adoption. Before Uruguay’s participation, South America had 79 ATMs, accounting for 0.2% of global BTC ATM installations.

according to To Ámbito, Uruguay’s first crypto ATM was installed in the coastal city of Punta del Este, a major tourist attraction in the region. The first Bitcoin ATM in Uruguay was developed and installed in partnership with two local crypto companies, URUBit and inBierto.

Crypto ATMs in Uruguay currently support withdrawals and deposits in five cryptocurrencies, namely – BTC, Binance Coin (BNB), Binance USD (BUSD), Ferret Token (FRT), and Urubit (URUB). FRT and URUB are internal cryptocurrencies managed and distributed by URUBit and inBierto, respectively.

Adolfo Varela, CEO of inBierto, confirmed that the program is 100% funded by the Uruguayan government. inBierto is a crypto investment platform and a member of the Uruguayan Fintech Chamber (Cámara Uruguaya de Fintech), a startup accelerator focused on the fintech sector. URUBit is a decentralized token created in Uruguay and deployed on Binance Smart Chain (BSC).

data Data from Coin ATM Radar shows that Colombia leads the South American market so far with 31 crypto ATM installations, followed by Brazil and Argentina with 22 and 11, respectively.

A crypto ATM has also been installed in other South American countries such as Ecuador, Venezuela, Aruba and St. Kitts and Nevis.

inBierto has not responded to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.

related: Uruguayan senator proposes bill to allow payments in cryptocurrencies

Last year, a Uruguayan senator introduced a draft bill aimed at regulating cryptocurrencies and enabling businesses to accept cryptocurrency payments.

As Cointelegraph reported, Senator Juan Sartori is not keen on the adoption of cryptocurrencies as legal tender. Instead, he suggests:

“Today, we propose a bill aimed at establishing a legal, legal and safe use in businesses related to the production and commercialization of virtual currencies in Uruguay.”