The city of Coolangatta is now home to Australia’s very first Bitcoin automated teller machine (ATM), which also comes equipped with capabilities that are compatible with the Lightning Network.
At this time, members of the general public are permitted to start utilizing the brand-new automated teller machine (ATM) that has just been placed at The Strand shopping mall in Coolangatta.
The functioning of a Bitcoin Lightning ATM is generally similar to that of a traditional Bitcoin ATM; however, customers are able to save a significant amount of time as a result of the layer-2 Lightning solution’s speedy transaction capabilities.
In addition to this, it makes it possible to buy very tiny amounts of bitcoin, most of which are priced in satoshis. Satoshis are the smallest unit of money that can be purchased with bitcoin; one satoshi is equal to 0.00000001 bitcoin.
Automated teller machines that accept bitcoin settle transactions directly on the blockchain at the moment; however, this comes with its own unique set of restrictions.
This suggests that in actual practice, even if a user purchases Bitcoin through an ATM, the virtual currency is not promptly sent to the user’s wallet. This is the case even if the user is in possession of a private key.
It is possible that making use of the Lightning Network to assist in finding a solution to this problem may bring about a significant improvement in terms of its resolution.
When utilizing Lightning, it is not necessary for the operator to batch the money, therefore the transaction may be finished immediately. The user will get money over the Lightning Network as soon as cash is entered into the device, which will occur immediately.
Although there is continuing debate over whether or not there will be a significant decrease in the expenses, it is likely that they will be less than those that are connected with an on-chain payment.
There are now 38,602 automated teller machines (ATMs) that dispense bitcoin all around the world, according to statistics given by Coin ATM Radar. Only in 2022 were 6,071 bitcoin ATMs installed, making that year the most prolific year for their installation.