http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-atms-gray-areas/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CoinDesk+%28CoinDesk+-+The+Voice+of+Digital+Currency%29
From Seeds to Weed, Bitcoin Finds a Home Where Local Commerce Goes Gray

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Bitcoin ATMs were seen as transformative for consumer acquisition of bitcoin when the devices first appeared on the market, but theyve become less fashionable over the past year because of complicated user experiences and compounding regulatory pressure.

Like most parts of the bitcoin economys infrastructure, bitcoin ATMs are evolving, and operators in the industry are looking to identify and correct these issues, while still enabling buyers to access bitcoin conveniently.

Aaron Williams, founder of Coinnections, is one entrepreneur who is seeking solutions to ease the KYC requirements bitcoin ATM owners would need to implement. Currently developming the beta for an anti-money laundering software product for cryptocurrency businesses, Coinnections creator believes US consumers will prefer bitcoin ATMs over bitcoin exchanges in the future.

Bitcoin ATM operators benefit from their small size in that they can implement a true risk-based AML program, Williams has said. A true risk-based AML program can allow for lower identification thresholds while still allowing the user to buy a useful amount of bitcoin. ATM operators can also benefit from not having to comply with multiple regulatory regions.

Though it might seem that the use of these machines has slowed, several Bitcoin ATM operators who wanted to remain anonymous said theyre still pulling in large amounts of cash from underbanked minorities.

Gil Luria, an analyst focusing on bitcoin and blockchain at Wedbush Securities, believes that bitcoin ATMs may play a key role in other less controversial gray areas of the financial system, such as helping the underbanked and migrant workers.

The main use case for a bitcoin ATM is a consumer that wants another level of anonymity since linking bitcoin wallets to a bank account or credit card defeats the purpose. Funding a bitcoin wallet with cash may be helping these consumers maintain their privacy, he said.

How the bitcoin ecosystem will develop along this fine line remains an ongoing narrative in the industry, though its one that, for now, might not have the benefit of venture capital or big bank investment.

Out of this association with crime has come the blockchain without bitcoin movement that has found regulated, risk-averse financial institutions and enterprises opting to build their own blockchain protocol without the bitcoin currency riding on top.

But whether or not bitcoin is used for the gray areas of commerce, it still stands as the only blockchain project that is currently in the wild and innovating on the clunky traditional payments process.

Thought this might go a long with the chat here,took out the garbage about drugs and made up stories by the writer.