Coinme, Inc. is a venture-backed crypto financial services and blockchain technology company. Launched in early 2014 in Seattle, WA, Coinme was the first licensed Bitcoin ATM operator in the United States. Since then, Coinme has grown significantly across the western United States. In addition to operating a network of crypto ATMs, Coinme has become a vertically integrated provider of digital wallets and an online digital currency exchange—which provide customers the opportunity to join the crypto financial revolution. Coinme believes the widespread international growth of crypto ATMs is a significant step towards providing a portal between government-issued fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies, enabling global access to innovation within the financial sector. In synch with this goal, the team behind Coinme have launched a new crypto-asset, “UpToken”.
The UpToken team, based out of the US, managed to raise over $18 000 000 for their project, with 1 token amounting to $0.1 USD during the main token sale.
Customers will receive a 30% discount on ATM transaction fees if they choose to use their UpToken to pay the transaction fee. For example, if a customer purchases $1,000 of Bitcoin from a Coinme ATM and the ATM transaction fee is 5%, the customer could choose to pay the fee from their Coinme UpToken wallet, which would reduce the transaction fee to 3.5%. Coinme intends that customers will be eligible for the UpToken transaction fee discount immediately upon the purchase of UpToken.
Each time a customer uses a Coinme crypto ATM, Coinme will automatically deposit UpToken into the customer’s Coinme wallet equal to 1% of their ATM transaction amount as part of Coinme’s customer rewards program, even if the customer elects to not use their UpToken to pay the transaction fee. Coinme may give customers UpToken from the Coinme UpToken Vault or, if it so decides in its discretion, a Coinme UpToken wallet which Coinme can replenish on an as needed basis by purchasing UpToken.
Over time, Coinme plans to add new cryptocurrencies to the ATM network. While it is impossible to know what the trending new cryptocurrency will be at any particular point in the future, Coinme plans to be ready to support its customers’ wishes, and plans to hold a UpToken vote for the opportunity to decide what cryptocurrency to add. UpToken votes for new cryptocurrencies will allow our customers and coin enthusiasts to have their voice heard in deciding which coins, and from which coin inventors and technologists, might become available on the crypto ATM network. Coinme plans to ensure that, as our customer preferences evolve, our cryptocurrency offerings will evolve as well.
The main issue with the project is that the UpToken value is entirely pegged to the usage of Coinme’s crypto ATM infrastructure. A map of the ATM network is nowhere to be found on their site so no one can be sure exactly how many working ATMs are deployed by Coinme and exactly how much usage they get. Overall, their token proposition is really weak.
There’s quite a task ahead of the Coinme team. Talking entirely on a numerical level, it costs somewhere in the range of 1’000 – 25’000 USD to buy/make one ATM. Giving a traditionalist gauge one can figure Coinme’s ATM’s will probably cost around 10’000 USD each. It’s a long shot before they can put an ATM on “each corner”.
