Cryptocurrencies continue their steady growth in South Africa and the rest of Africa. And as that growth takes place, the ability to withdraw or deposit has been made easier for South Africans all around the country.
Since its introduction, South Africa has now accumulated a total of 18 Bitcoin ATMs in the country. These are available in the following cities: Pretoria, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Stellenbosch, and Pietermaritzburg.
These ATMs are quite similar to the traditional fiat currency ATMs that were founded in the 1960s. The difference is that these ATMs are used more for the purchase of cryptocurrencies than for withdrawals, whereas the traditional ATMs are widely used for withdrawals more than deposits. Although it is possible to withdraw from crypto ATMs, most people are putting ZAR in.
The cost of transactions on the Bitcoin ATMs is approximately 6% per transaction in South Africa. All you have to do is select the cryptocurrency you’d like to purchase and then select how much of it you’d like to purchase. It is worth mentioning that all the Bitcoin ATMs are independant and could be owned by different organisations, making the costs of usage slightly different.
The limit set on most ATMs is R24,500, (approximately US$1430). Just R500 shy away from the R25,000 limit of most South African banks. When using these Bitcoin ATMs, you should expect identity verification, so it is always good to be prepared for this.
Where to find the Bitcoin ATMs
Durban
Durban offers 6 Bitcoin ATMs that are evenly spread out across the city, these can be found in the following places: Hillcrest Corner Mall, Water Crest Mall, Westville Mall, Umlazi Mega City, and the Musgrave Centre.
Johannesburg
The city of gold offers 3 Bitcoin ATMs that are all found in the North of JHB. Two in the Sandton area, and one in the Bryanston area, which is relatively close to Sandton.
Cape Town
Cape Town is home to 4 Bitcoin ATMs, 2 of them are found at 38 Whale Street, one is found at the AnkerPay close to the Waterfront and the last one is located at Willow Bridges in Bellville.
Pretoria
This capital city of South Africa is only home to 2 Bitcoin ATMs, in which both these ATMs are found on Brits Road.
Pietermaritzburg
There is only 1 in this city, and this is found at the Liberty Midlands Mall in the Woodlands suburb.
Port Elizabeth
PE, or more recently recognised as Gqeberha, only has 1 ATM that can be found at the Summerstrand Village Centre.
Stellenbosch
Stellies has 1 ATM that is located in Eikstad mall.
Buying Crypto at a Bitcoin ATM
As the country moves towards the acceptance of Cryptocurrencies for all, we are likely to see more of these ATMs. The USA alone boasts a quantitative supply of more than 30,000 Bitcoin ATM’s country wide. South Africa has a while to go, but we are just getting started. Crypto could possibly be the new currency known amongst African people depending on how weak or strong their currency gets as it also promotes the chances of a borderless currency. What crypto would you purchase from a crypto ATM? Let us know in the comments below.
