Pub installs county’s first Bitcoin ATM

A Devon pub has installed what it claims to be Devon’s first Bitcoin ATM.

The owner of the Port Royal, on Exeter Quay, installed the machine and says it has improved business at the pub.

He said: “We were the first in the Westcountry to have one and the first pub or business south of Bristol or possibly London to accept Bitcoin.

“It’s good. We have a lot of people coming into buy Bitcoin.”

Before this Bitcoin ATM and Devon’s second, in Kingsbridge town centre, users had to travel to Bristol to access the crypto currency that is traded online and unregulated by central banks.

The Port Royal’s owner, Carlos Pires, said: “Several people used to have to travel to Bristol to buy Bitcoin, but since they found out we’ve got it here, we have several people coming here on a daily basis to purchase their Bitcoin.

“One woman I was talking to used to travel up to Bristol to buy Bitcoin but now she comes here often. Quite a few buy Bitcoin then stop for a drink, so it’s useful both ways.”

Devon’s other Bitcoin ATM can be found at Kingsbridge’s information centre, by the town’s main bus station. Bitcoin is an entirely virtual currency that works without the need for a central bank, and can be sent over the internet.

Coins are transferred directly from person to person, and are kept in a digital wallet that can be accessed on a computer or mobile device.

Open six days a week, Kingsbridge residents now have an easy way to buy Bitcoin, and the location in Kingsbridge now also makes it easy for customers in nearby Salcombe, Dartmouth, Totnes and Plymouth to get to a Bitcoin ATM.