https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVN7wEtV9NM
According to the Daily HODL, customers can now buy Bitcoin from local coin machines located at US Supermarkets. While it’s just at some select cities, for now, it’s an excellent move for Coinstar and the cryptocurrency industry, especially if they begin to roll out more machines in the future.
For those who are unaware, Coinstar is the owner and operator of what it appears to be slot machines that convert coins into dollar bills. In this circumstance, they’ve partnered with Coinme, the first state-licensed Bitcoin ATM operator in the US.
Users of the Coinstar machines at California, Texas, and Washington can now choose to purchase Bitcoin, at certain Coinstar kiosks located in large grocery chains such as Albertsons, Safeway, and Vons by simply selecting the Buy Bitcoin button as you guys can see here.
To purchase Bitcoin from Coinstar, users need to follow a few very basic instructions.
1. Select “Buy Bitcoin” on the Coinstar Touch Screen
2. Insert Paper money into the machine up to $2,500
3. Receive a voucher with a Bitcoin redemption code
4. Visit, www.coinme.com/redeem to either create a Coinme account or sign into an existing account to redeem the voucher.
It’s a fantastic way for consumers to participate in the new crypto economy. Not only is Coinstar a very popular name across the US, it processes over 43 million coins every year, but 90% of US residents live within five miles of a kiosk. In total, Coinstar has over 20,000 fully automated coin-counting kiosks in 9 different countries with over 8.900 kiosks in the US alone.
The fact that Coinstar and Coinme have rolled out this partnership with coin kiosks next to large grocery stores like Albertsons have some in the community wondering whether this could ignite the next bull run. Albertsons is the second largest supermarket chain in the world and the 10th largest retailer, so it’s not your small local grocery. It’s a large reputable supermarket brand trusted by US citizens.
As a big supporter of the crypto industry, I am thrilled that there are easier and accessible ways to purchase Bitcoin. It is a great way to increase Bitcoin use and adoption in the community, especially from those who are curious, or eager but do not have the technical knowledge and understanding of how to purchase cryptocurrencies online.
Do I think this will fuel the next bull run?
Unfortunately, I don’t think the impact is as strong as we’d like it to be. Let’s say, in the event where Bitcoin adoption does increase, the Coinstar kiosks will be an excellent platform for greater rollout — if Bitcoin does become a popular and prevailing cryptocurrency in the future, I think we would be expecting the ‘Buy BItcoin; option to pop up on all Coinstar Kiosks around the world.
So what’s missing?
A lot more education in the sector. While Coinstar’s kiosks may tip over those who are curious about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies to purchase more, they would still need to be informed on how to store their tokens appropriately.
Furthermore, there’s still a vast majority of the population who are uninformed on the matter. The larger majority may have heard of the term Bitcoin and can reference the bull run in 2017, but what the token is, what it stands for and the importance of blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies, and tokenization, they probably don’t have too much of a clear understanding.
For all my startup fans out there, if we look to Geoffrey Moore’s model here, as with new startups or new technologies, for it to gain momentum and be accepted by the majority, it needs to be able to onboard the early majority. I believe that when it comes to the cryptocurrency industry, we’re probably just at the early adopters’ stage. To cross that chasm, not only do we need to make Bitcoin more easily accessible but educate people on this revolutionary technology.
So what are your thoughts on the situation guys?
Do you think Coinstar’s efforts will help increase user adoption?
Or do you think we’re still a long way to go?
Let me know what you guys think in the comments below.
It’s Cindy with Cryptopig! Catch you guys around!
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Disclaimer: Cryptopig content is written by a team of blockchain passionate people. We are not registered as investment advisors. Don’t take the information in this post as investment advice and make sure you do your own research before investing. Cryptocurrencies are a very risky investment, never invest more money than you can afford to lose.