thecoinrepublic.com
The U.S. retail giant Walmart has just revealed that they’ve put up 200 bitcoin (BTC) ATMs in some of their selected branches across the country. The store chain would also like to take part in the cryptocurrency adoption drive and jump right into the hype.
Shoppers can now purchase bitcoin on some Walmart stores through Coinstar kiosks. This test run alongside Coinstar kicked off earlier this month according to a Walmart representative on Thursday.
Walmart aiming at 8,000 bitcoin ATMs
As mentioned, it includes 200 kiosks within selected Walmart stores as this is said to be a part of a wider initiative by the coin-cashing company. Coinstar has partnered with the cryptocurrency exchange firm Coinme to offer bitcoin as Walmart is eyeing to put up 8,000 BTC ATMs inside its stores across the U.S.
Reports suggest that Walmart shoppers will be able to insert a banknote in exchange for paper vouchers with a redemption code on them. Further, it’s also a requisite for people to sign up for a Coinme account, not to mention a completed background check.
The downside of this endeavor, however, is the fees. It is said that the machines – if Walmart customers opted for bitcoin – will be charged with four percent alongside a seven percent cash exchange fee. Pretty steep indeed.
As for the bitcoin ATMs, it is said that these won’t allow Walmart shoppers to withdraw Bitcoin from their accounts.
Bitcoin expert on Walmart’s latest move
Meanwhile, BitOoda’s Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Research Sam Doctor pointed out that bitcoin ATMs have been around for quite some time now as these can be spotted on establishments other than Walmart. Additionally, he stated that the retail giant is expanding bitcoin accessibility to more people and went on to say that it gives “further legitimacy among skeptics, should they roll it out beyond an initial pilot.”
It was also learned that Walmart has been trying out the said service weeks following a high-profile hoax that involves a fraudulent press release noting that the retail chain would begin allowing its shoppers to pay with Litecoin (LTC). Now that such an announcement has been proven erroneous, Walmart has been reported to be making assessments in the future of cryptocurrencies in their operations. In line with this, there’s even a job posting from Walmart back in August as parts of it read, “to develop the digital currency strategy and product roadmap” while at the same time pinpointing crypto-related investment and partnerships.