Dive Brief:

• Convenience store chain Jacksons Food Stores announced an agreement with Lux Vending, doing business as Bitcoin Depot, to install bitcoin ATMs in 80 of its stores, according to an April 12 press release. 
• Bitcoin Depot’s machines allow customers to convert cash into bitcoin, rather than requiring a digital payment method to buy the cryptocurrency. 
• The bitcoin ATMs will be installed in every state where Jacksons operates — Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, California, Washington and Arizona.

Dive Insight:

Since the middle of 2022, Bitcoin Depot has announced plans to install almost 650 bitcoin ATMs in convenience stores, including its latest deal with Jacksons. Other chains working with Bitcoin Depot include GetGo Cafe + Markets, Stinker Stores, FastLane, Gas Express, High’s and Major’s Management.

C-stores are good environments for bitcoin machines because of “high foot traffic, long operating hours, and a familiar environment where people are used to using cash ATMs,” said Brandon Mintz, CEO and founder of Bitcoin Depot, in an email. 

“This partnership with Jacksons Food Stores, one of the larger convenience store chains in the U.S., further exemplifies Bitcoin Depot’s … ability to partner with key retailers in the convenience store industry that are looking for a reliable partner,” Mintz said in the announcement.

Bitcoin Depot isn’t the only bitcoin ATM player in the convenience store game. One competitor, Coinhub, announced April 5 that it was bringing machines to more than 1,000 c-stores. Coinhub works with chains, such as 7-Eleven, Circle K and RaceTrac.

Overall, the global bitcoin ATM market stood at $117 million in 2022 and is expected to grow by about 63% per year through 2030, according to data from Grand View Research.

Atlanta-based Bitcoin Depot has more than 7,000 bitcoin ATMs in 48 states and 10 Canadian provinces, and it acquired fellow crypto company Bitaccess in 2022, Mintz said. 

Customers who buy cryptocurrency through these machines must either have a digital wallet or create one with the company’s app. They then input their contact information, and a verification code is sent to their phone. From there, customers select the crypto they want to buy, put in their digital wallet details and feed the cash payment into the machine.  

Founded in 1975, Meridian, Idaho-based Jacksons Food Stores operates more than 300 stores across seven states via the Jacksons Food Stores and ExtraMile by Jacksons Convenience Store brands.