The Argentine central bank started a program to ease regulations in the banking and finance industries, which includes a provision to allow non-banking entities to have ATMs within their premises. The news is significant because of the kinds of ATMs these places may be installing in the near future.
The Banco Central de la República Argentina’s relaxation of regulation is going to allow a third player to enter the scene with its own financial network that will stand on its own next to Banelco and Link. Odyssey Group, a US-based company that provides ATM machines in North America, is seeking to expand its offer to Argentina, with 4,000 tellers that can also work with cryptocurrencies.
“We have plans already in place to install 4,000 ATMs, and in two years our plan is to install 5,000. But this is only a small part of the central bank’s expectation of 30,000 units around the entire country,” said CEO Sebastián Ponceliz to Infobae, an Argentine newspaper.
Odyssey plans to use its newer Octagon models, 200 of which have already been installed in Argentina. Previously, Octagon ATMs could only work with cryptocurrencies, and allowed the exchange of Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin. With the lifting of regulatory restrictions, the ATMs will now serve as convenient conduits that work inside of banking networks next to points of purchase.
“They won’t just be ATMs where people could withdraw money. They will also allow prepaid card purchases, e-commerce applications, blockchain transfers, cryptocurrencies, and microscoring for credit,” Ponceliz added.
In related news, the country’s largest futures exchange, ROFEX, was considering adding Bitcoin futures to its offering since back in November last year. If these measures come to fruition, the landscape in Argentina will become more cryptocurrency friendly.
This article appeared first on Cryptovest
