The number of Bitcoin ATMs has crossed the 1000 mark according to CoinATMRadar which uses a map to show Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency ATM locations as well as alternative cryptocurrency exchange services.There are now 1002 of them with the majority of these machines - 621 - located in the US followed by Canada.South Africa is the only country in Africa on the list with just one machine.For the Bitcoin ATM manufacturers, Genesis Coin tops the list with its branded machines in 442 locations while Lamassu has 197 and General Bytes theirs in 159 locations.The US figure didn’t come as a surprise as the country seems to be the next major market for Bitcoin in a couple of years.Several factors are working to its advantage.They include the economy, the currency, the population, higher disposable income and more importantly, events in China.Basically, the ATM provides one of the easiest ways to buy and sell Bitcoins as a familiar machine that many people have been used to in the traditional sense.

In its blog published on Friday, Feb.17, CoinATMRadar notes that the last seven days had an average of four machines installed per day, which means almost 30 new machines were installed during last week.As at May last year, there were 639 Bitcoin ATMs in different parts of the world according to CoinATMRadar.The new figure shows about 56 percent increase in nine months.In 2014, the same website showed there were 211 Bitcoin ATMs operating on six continents.A Technavio global ATM market report last year says the growing need for automated teller machines including Bitcoin ATMs in developing nations such as Nigeria, India and Kenya is propelling the growth of the global ATM market.Whether there is a correlation between the increase in the number of Bitcoin ATMs and the price movement of the digital currency or its adoption is yet to be established.Aside those with a commercial focus, some of the private organizations that have unveiled their personal Bitcoin ATM machine include Deloitte and Ernst & Young (EY), one of the “Big Four” accounting corporations in the world, which installed a Bitcoin ATM in their public office in Switzerland, enabling its clients and employees to purchase and sell Bitcoins.

Bitcoin ATMs could spring up across Greece as soon as October as citizens and businesses become increasingly desperate to move their money despite capital controls.BTCGreece, which bills itself as the country's first bitcoin exchange, plans to eventually install 1,000 ATMs nationwide, in partnership with European bitcoin platform, Cubits.Thanos Marinos, the founder of BTCGreece, told CNBC on Wednesday that a soft launch was on the cards for October."It is part of my vision to create a block chain ecosystem in Greece," he told CNBC."If all goes as expected with no major issues we will launch first ATMs October 2015."Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency that can be used around the world.Transactions are listed in a shared public ledger called the block chain.The digital currency has been touted as one way to to circumvent Greek capital controls.These have been in place since June and limit domestic investors to withdrawing no more than 60 euros ($66) per day from Greek banks, making life extremely tough for companies that need to pay or receive bills.

Greek individuals and businesses are also forbidden from moving money to bank accounts abroad.The ATMs envisaged by Marinos could allow users to convert fiat currency into bitcoin and potentially vice versa.As yet, BTCGreece has no ATMs in Greece.However, Marinos said he had already received requests from 300 shops for bitcoin ATMs."We want to do it cautiously," he told CNBC, adding that BTCGreece would announce more partnerships next week.Bitcoin rallied in June amid reports that Greeks were flocking to the currency in order to circumvent the controls.current litecoin mining rateHowever, the currency's decentralized nature makes it challenging to say how many Greeks currently use it.bitcoin block raw dataBitcoin ATMs have already been installed in other countries, predominately in the U.S.cambiare litecoin

and Western European countries like the U.K., the Netherlands and Spain."There has been a focus on bitcoin and Greece and the economic instability there," Akif Khan, chief commercial officer at digital commerce company, Bitnet, told CNBC on Wednesday."So in one sense it will be an interesting experiment to see if Greeks do gravitate towards bitcoin as one of the tools in their financial toolkit to try and cope."Read MoreTrack Bitcoin versus the euro Belfast-based Khan added that Greece's regulatory environment was conducive to introducing ATMs.ethereum eth chart"In principle, putting bitcoin ATMs into Greece is just as feasible as in any other European country… Greece does not have a prohibitive regulatory environment in this regard," he told CNBC.bitcoin bubble november 2013—By CNBC's Katy Barnato.cyprus bitcoin atm

Germany-based digital currency bitcoin ATM and point-of-sale (POS) solution provider BitXatm has announced a new partnership that will find the company shipping 1,000 units to the US in a bid to build the country's largest bitcoin ATM network.For the initiative, BitXatm will partner with Los Angeles-based CryptVision, a startup that itself is seeking to build the largest network of bitcoin ATMs around the globe.As part of the deal, CryptVision will become the exclusive provider of BitXatms in the US and Canada.Sergey Yesayan, president of CryptVision, framed the move as one that will find the new company moving quickly to gain a foothold in the bitcoin market, saying: "In terms of positioning our products all over the country, we're planning to have most of them in place by the end of the year, and are looking for location partners in shopping malls, restaurants and night clubs."Yesayan said that the bitcoin ATM units will be available for free to qualified operators, with the qualification process for operators beginning 25th July.

CryptVision plans to treat the units as vending machines and manage the associated financial responsibilities and licensing.The announcement follows BitXatm's May upgrade to its Sumo Pro ATM product, and was issued at The North American Bitcoin Conference (TNABC), a two-day community event being held in downtown Chicago.Launched in April of this year, BitXatm's signature unit – the Sumo Pro – now provides one-way or two-way transaction capabilities in addition to its POS features.The units were on full display at the TNABC, in the country where the company aims to better cater to its biggest market.Marcel Bruck, sales director at BitXatm, told CoinDesk: "US is the number one market.Bitcoin is erupting and you see that most of our customers are also from America.In Europe, you still have a lot of regulations."BitXatms can accept and dispense any digital currency and offers a web-based back end that allows operators to manage profits, cash flow and to change settings on the ATM remotely.

The company said it will continue to provide support for its ATMs to CryptVision once the units are deployed.The BitXatm announcement is the latest in a string of major news stemming from the NABC event this weekend.Spurred by the launch of new bitcoin lobbying group, the Digital Chamber of Commerce, day one of the conference included major announcements from bitcoin wallet and block explorer provider Blockchain and China-based digital currency exchange OKCoin.To catch up on day one of the NABC, read our full recap here.For breaking news from the event as it happens, follow CoinDesk on Twitter.The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is an independent media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies.Have breaking news or a story tip to send to our journalists?Contact us at [email protected]/* */.