What is it like when thousands of Bitcoin ATMs appear overnight in Switzerland?

At the end of October, the Swiss National Railway Company SBB announced a surprising news: it plans to sell Bitcoin at ticket machines at all Swiss train stations starting from November 11. This pilot project will last at least two years and is operated by Swiss financial services company Sweepay. Customers who want to buy Bitcoin need to prepare a Swiss mobile phone number and a Bitcoin wallet.

It is reported that each transaction of this service has a fixed upper limit of 500 francs (about 460 euros, 500 US dollars). Now the SBB ticket machines have become Bitcoin ATM machines. The Swiss Bitcoin ATM network consisting of more than 1,000 machines is working day and night.

More than 1,000 Bitcoin ATMs appeared in Switzerland overnight, and Bitcoin.com reporters were the first to test the service.

It is actually very simple to buy Bitcoin at the SBB ticket machine. You only need to follow these steps:

1. Select "Other offers" and then click "Prepaid";

2. Click "Top up Bitcoin" and the machine will prompt you to scan your Bitcoin wallet QR code. (If you can't complete the scan, you may need to change your wallet and try increasing your phone's screen brightness.)

3. After scanning, we need to enter the amount we want to purchase (any number between 20 and 500 francs) and confirm. (Note that each transaction will be charged a transaction fee of about 6% , as well as fees caused by the exchange rate. Compared with regular Bitcoin ATMs in Switzerland, the services provided by SBB ticket machines will be more expensive)

4. After checking that everything is correct, we need to confirm the transaction by entering the secure transaction code (SMS).

5. Finally, we pay the corresponding amount of francs: cash or debit card, but not credit card. (A few minutes later, we can check this transaction on the Bitcoin blockchain.)

User feedback

The reporter also interviewed some passengers at the train station and asked them what they thought of this unique feature. One of the tourists named Fred replied: "I'm not sure if I will use it. I bought a Bitcoin on an exchange (for investment), but I don't buy it regularly, so this service is useless to me, but I can imagine it may be useful to others."

In addition, the reporter also found a person who had used the service online (the interviewee requested anonymity):

BC: What positive aspects do you see in the Bitcoin buying feature on Sweepay/SBB?

A: They are everywhere. It's not a big deal for anyone living in Zurich, Geneva or Basel, where you have Bitcoin ATMs with lower fees, but I live in Fribourg, where there is no such service. No Bitcoin ATMs, no local Mycelium traders. I don't want to connect any of these services to my bank account, so the closest option for me is the Bitcoin ATM in Bern, but its opening hours are inconvenient for me (it's in a billiard room and opens at 11:30). Therefore, it's a better option for me to buy Bitcoin at the SBB ticket machine than to go to Bern, even though it has a premium (for small amounts).

BC: What are the negative aspects of Sweepay/SBB’s Bitcoin purchasing function?

A: It requires your phone number and then you have to prepay. From what I've seen, they require your phone number to make sure you're buying less than a certain amount of bitcoin per year, which might simplify the regulatory issues they have. I sympathize with this reasoning, but at the end of the day, the privacy issues worry me.

The second major disadvantage is of course the price. They take a 6% transaction fee, but that's not too bad, the nearest Bitcoin ATM in Bern also charges 5%. And the exchange rate they use is also very unfavorable. For example, at around 7:30 last night, the exchange rate they used was about 1 BTC: 795.37 francs, and if I remember correctly, the market exchange rate at that time should have been 1 BTC: 774 francs. I forget the exact moment, but at that time, the price of Bitcoin went from 769 francs to 774 francs. So, I spent nearly 2.7% on top of the 6% transaction fee.

BC: Do you believe this feature will be used by the mainstream population?

A: I don't think so, cities with shops that accept Bitcoin generally have Bitcoin ATMs with lower fees. Of course, this service is now available throughout Switzerland, which I am grateful for, and its high fees are also an incentive for OTC methods such as Localbitcoins or Mycelium.

BC: What do you think SBB will do next regarding Bitcoin?

A: I don't think they will accept Bitcoin anytime soon. On the ticket machines, the option to sell Bitcoin is in the "prepaid" category. SBB is a service provider for Sweepay because their machines know how to make money, they are distributed throughout Switzerland and have a QR code scanner. The SBB Group is not actually in this game, and if this is an experiment to see how many customers will be interested in Bitcoin, I think it may have failed. I certainly welcome Sweepay to participate, but due to the high premium and in many cases, these services will only have a market in small cities where there are no Bitcoin ATMs. On the other hand, since there is still a lack of businesses accepting Bitcoin, I guess that there are very few people willing to use such services.

Sweepay CEO: Will expand to other countries in the future

The reporter also contacted Sweepay’s CEO Rodolphe Texier, a month after the company began operating the project.

Bitcoin.com (BC): Could you elaborate on the context of this project (origin and history, people involved, issues, mission, etc.)?

Rodolphe Texier (RT): Sweepay is a Swiss "prepaid value" underwriter and we believe Bitcoin is a suitable prepaid product from a tax and compliance perspective due to the current situation of Bitcoin in Switzerland. As Bitcoin distribution is more suitable for vending machines than POS machines, we have identified SBB ticket machines as an excellent distribution channel to expand Bitcoin. Promoting access to Bitcoin is the main goal of SBB's services. Our vision is to promote the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Switzerland through existing digital or physical channels.

BC: What are the advantages of SBB/Sweepay’s Bitcoin service?

RT: The size of the network. Almost every Swiss resident is close to a train station. Also, the availability of the network, which is open 24/7, and of course the quality of the service, i.e. the reliability of the SBB ticket machines.

BC: So what do you think could be seen as disadvantages of the SBB/Sweepay Bitcoin service?

RT: This service requires a Swiss mobile number and you must use Sweepay as a financial intermediary. We are responsible for the compliance of this service.

BC: Can you expand on the numbers for us? For example, how many Bitcoin transactions are processed by SBB ticket machines in a month?

RT: So far, the service has met our expectations in terms of transaction value and volume.

BC: Where are the machines with the highest sales volume located? In major cities, or in places where there are no regular Bitcoin ATMs?

RT: Bitcoin trading is well distributed throughout Switzerland (in areas where SBB ticket machines are available). This also concerns the larger cities where regular Bitcoin ATMs have been placed.

BC: Do you believe that in the future, Sweepay/SBB’s Bitcoin services will be accepted by the general public?

RT: The purpose of this service is to facilitate the public to obtain Bitcoin. It is also necessary for it to be used by a large ecosystem and related services.

BC: What will Sweepay do next with regard to Bitcoin?

RT: SweePay will pay special attention to these services, which may promote the use of Bitcoin.

BC: Do you plan to expand this service to other countries?

RT: Currently, our main focus is on Switzerland, but we are also looking for strategic partners to expand this service to other countries.

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Overall, the project seems to be progressing smoothly at the moment and has received positive reviews from some users.

What do you think of sweepay/SBB’s bitcoin buying feature?