首臺比特幣ATM機在溫哥華投入使用大綱

A silver and blue ATM, perched up next to the espresso bar in a trendy Vancouver coffee shop, could launch a new era for the virtual currency bitcoin, offering an almost instant way to exchange the world's leading virtual money for cash.

The value of a bitcoin soared from $13 in January to a high of $266 in April as more businesses and consumers used them to buy and sell online. Some investors are also treating bitcoins like gold, using them to hedge against currency fluctuations and speculating on their rise.

The kiosk, which looks like the average ATM but with hand and barcode scanners, opened for business on Tuesday and by mid-morning people were lined up to swap their bitcoins for cash, or to deposit cash to buy more bitcoins.

"It's as easy as walking up to a machine, scanning your hand, entering some cash and buying bitcoin," said Jordan Kelley, chief executive of Las Vegas-based Robocoin, the company that builds the ATMs. "With this, it's a 2-minute process. For any online exchange, it's at least two days."

Bitcoins, currently worth about $210 each, can be transferred without going through banks or clearing houses, thereby cutting fees. Users can buy products and services online or in a handful of stores, including the Waves coffee shop where the ATM is located.

With the bitcoin ATM, users scan their hand to confirm identity, then funds move to or from a virtual wallet on their smartphone. The system limits transfers to $1,000 a day, in an effort to curb money laundering and other fraud.

Bitcoiniacs, the local dealer that operates the ATM, will roll out four other kiosks across Canada in December. Robocoin said Canada was the ideal place to launch the kiosk due to a critical mass of users and less stringent oversight than in the US, where the bitcoin trade is monitored by anti-money laundering regulators.

"We think the Vancouver market is enormous and we're excited to be here," said Kelley. "By the end of 2013, we'll be all over Canada. By the end of 2014, we'll be all over the world, including the US."

Bitcoin is not a recognised currency in Canada, so Ottawa's anti-money laundering watchdog, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, does not monitor its trade.

However, Bitcoiniacs' founders say they are working with the agency to be ready for when Canada does start regulating them.

"We're already being proactive in our business," said Bitcoiniacs co-founder Mitchell Demeter. "We abide by any guidelines they would impose - which includes the 'know your customer' laws and anti-money laundering laws."

Bitcoins were launched in 2008 and are traded within a global network of computers. They are not backed by a single company or government, but their release is tightly controlled, mimicking a central banking system's control over the minting of money.

Bitcoins can be bought with near anonymity, which supporters say lowers fraud risk and increases privacy. But critics say that also makes bitcoins a magnet for drug transactions, money-laundering and other illegal activities.

The currency's reputation took a hit this month, when US regulators shut down Silk Road, an online marketplace used to buy and sell illegal drugs, and seized $3.6m (£2.3m) in bitcoins.

But the virtual currency is gaining hold among businesses and consumers, a key step to a bigger role.

"I think it's definitely going mainstream," said Demeter. "I think as things progress, and the infrastructure is built, it will become easier for people to buy and sell, and so more people will start using it."

In Vancouver, for example, dozens of people attend weekly bitcoin meet-ups and a member co-op is promoting the currency to a growing list of local retailers.

At Waves, Vancouver resident Chung Cheong used bitcoin to pay for his mug of tea and was happy to mull over the future of the digital currency.

"It's been said that we're at the stage where email was in 1992," he said. "Is it risky? Sure. But look at how the internet and email changed the world."在溫哥華一家時髦的咖啡店內，一臺機身主體顏色爲銀色和藍色的比特幣機被放置在意式咖啡機旁，此機器可以爲比特幣這種全球領先的虛擬貨幣提供即時兌換業務，可能爲其開闢新紀元。

由於不少商家和消費者開始使用比特幣在網上進行交易，比特幣的兌換價格由一月的13美元迅速上漲至四月的266美元。一些投資者將比特幣視爲黃金，用其對抗貨幣的通脹以及進行投機行爲。

這一取款機從外表上看與普通的取款機並無差異。不過，該機器配置手掌和條形碼掃描儀，以滿足消費者進行比特幣兌換現金以及用現金購買比特幣的需求。據悉，該機器推出當天上午就有許多人排隊前來辦理業務。

總部在拉斯維加斯的該機器製造商Robocoin的首席執行官喬丹•凱利指出，“只要走到機器前掃描手掌，放入現金就能兌換比特幣，就是這樣簡單。通過這臺機器進行業務操作兩分鐘就可以完成，而網上交易要至少用兩天的時間。”

比特幣現在的兌換價值是210美元，人們不用去銀行和清算公司也能轉賬，因此減少了額外的費用。消費者在網上或少數商店內可以使用比特幣消費，包括放置比特幣ATM機的海浪咖啡店。

使用比特幣ATM機時，消費者要進行手掌掃描，以確認身份，然後再通過智能手機的虛擬錢包進行轉賬。該系統每天的交易上限爲1000美元，其目的在於打擊洗錢行爲以及其他虛假操作。

負責運營該機器的加拿大本地交易商Bitcoiniacs稱，其他四臺機器計劃於12月在加拿大境內面世。而Robocoin稱，加拿大推出比特幣ATM機，是因爲該地區使用比特幣活躍，且監管較輕鬆。在美國，比特幣交易由反洗錢機構監管。

凱利稱，“我們對溫哥華龐大的市場前景充滿期待。2013年末我們將在加拿大全面推廣這種比特幣ATM機，2014年末將推廣至全球，包括美國在內。”

比特幣在加拿大並不是公認的貨幣，因此渥太華反洗錢監管機構——金融交易和報告分析中心不對比特幣交易進行監管。

然而Bitcoiniacs的創始人稱他們正與經銷商合作以做好應對加拿大對比特幣監管的準備。

“我們現在對自己業務的積極性很高”，Bitcoiniacs的聯合創始人米歇爾•迪米特稱，“我們將遵守所有條例，包括‘瞭解客戶’的規定和反洗錢法”

比特幣於2008年推出，在全球互聯網中進行交易。雖然沒有獲得任何公司或國家的支持，但由於其仿照中央銀行系統發行比特幣，因此監管較爲嚴格。

比特幣幾乎可以匿名交易，其支持者稱這樣可以降低虛假操作的風險，增加個人隱私。但反對者稱這樣會吸引更多的人用比特幣進行毒品交易，洗錢和其他違法活動。

本週比特幣的名聲受到了打擊，美國監管機構關閉了絲綢之路網站並沒收其360萬比特幣（合230萬英鎊），因其涉及網絡毒品交易。

然而商家和消費者力挺虛擬貨幣，未來它將扮演更加重要的角色。

“我認爲比特幣正在走向主流，”迪米特稱，“隨着時間的推移，比特幣基礎設施完善後人們使用比特幣更加方便，比特幣的使用羣體也將擴大。”

舉例來說，在溫哥華，每週有數十人蔘與比特幣的見面會，消費合作社正將比特幣推廣至更多當地零售商。

海浪咖啡內，溫哥華的居民張聰正使用比特幣買茶，考慮到虛擬貨幣的前景他表示很樂觀。

“據說我們又處於在1992年剛發明郵件的狀態了，”他說，“虛擬貨幣有風險嗎？當然有。但回首網絡和郵件給世界帶來的變化，一切都是值得的。”