The first digital currency ATM has been installed so that Mexican senators can make transactions.
Senators Miguel Ángel Mancera and Juan Manuel Fócil appear alongside the founders of Mexchain.Finance. (Photo: Senate of the Republic)
The first Bitcoin ATM from the company ChainBytes was installed during the symposium Bitcoin: Mexico reaching for the future, held by the Senate of the Republic and organized by the “10 for Mexico” youth group, so legislators can carry out transactions using the digital currency.
It is located in the lobby, on the first floor of the building, and has a exchange rate of 795,618.36 pesos for each Bitcoin.
Nuevo León senator Indira Kempis was responsible for having the ATM installed on the premises, explaining that it represented freedom, inclusion, and financial education in Mexico.
These are the options offered by the Bitcoin ATM at the Senate of the Republic. (Photo: ChainBytes)
The coordinator of the PRD parliamentary group, Miguel Ángel Mancera, referred to this technology as being a “permanent, constant revolution” which Mexico must regulate.
“There have already been more than 62 million Bitcoin transactions between just over 109 million accounts.”
It began in 2009 and its use has spread to young people around the world, but it raises more questions than answers.
The legislator joked that “my colleague here, Juan Manuel Fócil, and I are already debating whether or not to invest in Bitcoin. For a start, there’ll be an ATM here in the Senate.”
The challenge lies in using the technology, he explained. “We cannot be isolated. We have to move towards regulation, and we have to take advantage of all the opportunities that are being presented.”