A recent report by MarketsandMarkets, the global cryptocurrency ATM market is expected to hit $144.5 million by 2023. This would be a massive rise of eight-fold from the current $16.3 million.

The expected rise wouldn’t come as a surprise to many, with the Bitcoin ATM market up from just around $6.8 million last year according to some estimates. It has, however, gone up by more than 50% over the past few months.

Crypto ATM will rise as cryptocurrencies grow

The research pointed out that as the cryptocurrencies continue to grow, so will the number of ATMs and the transactions conducted through them.

Currently, there are 3,650 Bitcoin ATMs in the world. Data pulled from cryptocurrency ATM tracking website Coin ATM Radar suggests that roughly 30 bitcoin ATMs are installed each week.

The report also further pointed out that the market for crypto-to-crypto virtual currency ATMs will also grow significantly leading up to 2023. Currently, Bitcoin/crypto-to-fiat ATMs dominate the market, with 62.49% of the market.

The display segment is expected to become the largest part of the crypto ATM market over the next five years. Due to the user-friendly environment, it provides for users, the display section is considered as very vital.

North America will continue to thrive

The report further revealed that North America will continue to dominate the Bitcoin ATM sector over the next few years. The continent holds the largest share of the market (73%) as innovation and adoption drive demand higher.

The United States has the highest number of Bitcoin ATMs at the moment, with 2,201 ATMs currently installed. The next country after the United States with the highest number of Bitcoin ATMs is Canada, with the two being the clear leaders in the industry.

The report stated that:

The US is expected to continue to dominate the crypto ATM market during the forecast period owing to the presence of a large number of crypto ATM hardware and software providers and favorable investment environment (without any legal barriers),” the report titled. In 2017, the Government of Mexico declared bitcoin legal, and it would be regulated by the Fintech Law. In addition, Canada has recorded extensive start-up activity, especially for cryptocurrency.

Austria is the third biggest Bitcoin ATM market, with 196 locations (5%), the United Kingdom has 176 locations (4.8%), Russia with 79 locations (2%), and Spain with 63 locations (1.7%).

The major players in the crypto ATM market are also based in the U.S. the companies include Coinme, Coinsource, COVAULT, Genesis Coin and Lamassu.

Other important manufacturers are Bitaccess from Canada, Bitxatm from Germany, GENERAL BYTES from the Czech Republic, Orderbob from Austria and RUSbit from Russia.

Almost all the cryptocurrency ATMs serve Bitcoin, with only 56.7% of them supporting other altcoins such as Litecoin or Ethereum.

Bitcoin ATM malware found for sale online

Tokyo-based security software manufacturer Trend Micro last month discovered a Bitcoin automated teller machine (ATM) malware available for purchase online.

The malicious software exploits a Bitcoin ATM vulnerability and enables fraudsters to receive the BTC equivalent of up to 6,750 U.S. dollars, euros, or pounds.