A silver and blue ATM, perched up next to the espresso bar in a trendy Vancouver coffee shop, could launch a new era for the virtual currency bitcoin, offering an almost instant way to exchange the world's leading virtual money for cash.

在溫哥華一家時(shí)髦的咖啡店內(nèi)，一臺(tái)機(jī)身主體顏色為銀色和藍(lán)色的比特幣機(jī)被放置在意式咖啡機(jī)旁，此機(jī)器可以為比特幣這種全球領(lǐng)先的虛擬貨幣提供即時(shí)兌換業(yè)務(wù)，可能為其開辟新紀(jì)元。

The value of a bitcoin soared from $13 in January to a high of $266 in April as more businesses and consumers used them to buy and sell online. Some investors are also treating bitcoins like gold, using them to hedge against currency fluctuations and speculating on their rise.

由于不少商家和消費(fèi)者開始使用比特幣在網(wǎng)上進(jìn)行交易，比特幣的兌換價(jià)格由一月的13美元迅速上漲至四月的266美元。一些投資者將比特幣視為黃金，用其對(duì)抗貨幣的通脹以及進(jìn)行投機(jī)行為。

The kiosk, which looks like the average ATM but with hand and barcode scanners, opened for business on Tuesday and by mid-morning people were lined up to swap their bitcoins for cash, or to deposit cash to buy more bitcoins.

這一取款機(jī)從外表上看與普通的取款機(jī)并無差異。不過，該機(jī)器配置手掌和條形碼掃描儀，以滿足消費(fèi)者進(jìn)行比特幣兌換現(xiàn)金以及用現(xiàn)金購(gòu)買比特幣的需求。據(jù)悉，該機(jī)器推出當(dāng)天上午就有許多人排隊(duì)前來辦理業(yè)務(wù)。

"It's as easy as walking up to a machine, scanning your hand, entering some cash and buying bitcoin," said Jordan Kelley, chief executive of Las Vegas-based Robocoin, the company that builds the ATMs. "With this, it's a 2-minute process. For any online exchange, it's at least two days."

總部在拉斯維加斯的該機(jī)器制造商Robocoin的首席執(zhí)行官喬丹·凱利指出，“只要走到機(jī)器前掃描手掌，放入現(xiàn)金就能兌換比特幣，就是這樣簡(jiǎn)單。通過這臺(tái)機(jī)器進(jìn)行業(yè)務(wù)操作兩分鐘就可以完成，而網(wǎng)上交易要至少用兩天的時(shí)間?！?/div>

Bitcoins, currently worth about $210 each, can be transferred without going through banks or clearing houses, thereby cutting fees. Users can buy products and services online or in a handful of stores, including the Waves coffee shop where the ATM is located.

比特幣現(xiàn)在的兌換價(jià)值是210美元，人們不用去銀行和清算公司也能轉(zhuǎn)賬，因此減少了額外的費(fèi)用。消費(fèi)者在網(wǎng)上或少數(shù)商店內(nèi)可以使用比特幣消費(fèi)，包括放置比特幣ATM機(jī)的海浪咖啡店。

With the bitcoin ATM, users scan their hand to confirm identity, then funds move to or from a virtual wallet on their smartphone. The system limits transfers to $1,000 a day, in an effort to curb money laundering and other fraud.

使用比特幣ATM機(jī)時(shí)，消費(fèi)者要進(jìn)行手掌掃描，以確認(rèn)身份，然后再通過智能手機(jī)的虛擬錢包進(jìn)行轉(zhuǎn)賬。該系統(tǒng)每天的交易上限為1000美元，其目的在于打擊洗錢行為以及其他虛假操作。

Bitcoiniacs, the local dealer that operates the ATM, will roll out four other kiosks across Canada in December. Robocoin said Canada was the ideal place to launch the kiosk due to a critical mass of users and less stringent oversight than in the US, where the bitcoin trade is monitored by anti-money laundering regulators.

負(fù)責(zé)運(yùn)營(yíng)該機(jī)器的加拿大本地交易商Bitcoiniacs稱，其他四臺(tái)機(jī)器計(jì)劃于12月在加拿大境內(nèi)面世。而Robocoin稱，加拿大推出比特幣ATM機(jī)，是因?yàn)樵摰貐^(qū)使用比特幣活躍，且監(jiān)管較輕松。在美國(guó)，比特幣交易由反洗錢機(jī)構(gòu)監(jiān)管。

"We think the Vancouver market is enormous and we're excited to be here," said Kelley. "By the end of 2013, we'll be all over Canada. By the end of 2014, we'll be all over the world, including the US."

凱利稱，“我們對(duì)溫哥華龐大的市場(chǎng)前景充滿期待。2013年末我們將在加拿大全面推廣這種比特幣ATM機(jī)，2014年末將推廣至全球，包括美國(guó)在內(nèi)?！?/div>

Bitcoin is not a recognised currency in Canada, so Ottawa's anti-money laundering watchdog, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, does not monitor its trade.

比特幣在加拿大并不是公認(rèn)的貨幣，因此渥太華反洗錢監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)——金融交易和報(bào)告分析中心不對(duì)比特幣交易進(jìn)行監(jiān)管。

However, Bitcoiniacs' founders say they are working with the agency to be ready for when Canada does start regulating them.

然而Bitcoiniacs的創(chuàng)始人稱他們正與經(jīng)銷商合作以做好應(yīng)對(duì)加拿大對(duì)比特幣監(jiān)管的準(zhǔn)備。

"We're already being proactive in our business," said Bitcoiniacs co-founder Mitchell Demeter. "We abide by any guidelines they would impose - which includes the 'know your customer' laws and anti-money laundering laws."

“我們現(xiàn)在對(duì)自己業(yè)務(wù)的積極性很高”，Bitcoiniacs的聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人米歇爾·迪米特稱，“我們將遵守所有條例，包括‘了解客戶’的規(guī)定和反洗錢法”

Bitcoins were launched in 2008 and are traded within a global network of computers. They are not backed by a single company or government, but their release is tightly controlled, mimicking a central banking system's control over the minting of money.

比特幣于2008年推出，在全球互聯(lián)網(wǎng)中進(jìn)行交易。雖然沒有獲得任何公司或國(guó)家的支持，但由于其仿照中央銀行系統(tǒng)發(fā)行比特幣，因此監(jiān)管較為嚴(yán)格。

Bitcoins can be bought with near anonymity, which supporters say lowers fraud risk and increases privacy. But critics say that also makes bitcoins a magnet for drug transactions, money-laundering and other illegal activities.

比特幣幾乎可以匿名交易，其支持者稱這樣可以降低虛假操作的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，增加個(gè)人隱私。但反對(duì)者稱這樣會(huì)吸引更多的人用比特幣進(jìn)行毒品交易，洗錢和其他違法活動(dòng)。

The currency's reputation took a hit this month, when US regulators shut down Silk Road, an online marketplace used to buy and sell illegal drugs, and seized $3.6m (￡2.3m) in bitcoins.

本周比特幣的名聲受到了打擊，美國(guó)監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)關(guān)閉了絲綢之路網(wǎng)站并沒收其360萬比特幣（合230萬英鎊），因其涉及網(wǎng)絡(luò)毒品交易。

But the virtual currency is gaining hold among businesses and consumers, a key step to a bigger role.

然而商家和消費(fèi)者力挺虛擬貨幣，未來它將扮演更加重要的角色。

"I think it's definitely going mainstream," said Demeter. "I think as things progress, and the infrastructure is built, it will become easier for people to buy and sell, and so more people will start using it."

“我認(rèn)為比特幣正在走向主流，”迪米特稱，“隨著時(shí)間的推移，比特幣基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施完善后人們使用比特幣更加方便，比特幣的使用群體也將擴(kuò)大?！?/div>

In Vancouver, for example, dozens of people attend weekly bitcoin meet-ups and a member co-op is promoting the currency to a growing list of local retailers.

舉例來說，在溫哥華，每周有數(shù)十人參與比特幣的見面會(huì)，消費(fèi)合作社正將比特幣推廣至更多當(dāng)?shù)亓闶凵獭?/div>

At Waves, Vancouver resident Chung Cheong used bitcoin to pay for his mug of tea and was happy to mull over the future of the digital currency.

海浪咖啡內(nèi)，溫哥華的居民張聰正使用比特幣買茶，考慮到虛擬貨幣的前景他表示很樂觀。

"It's been said that we're at the stage where email was in 1992," he said. "Is it risky? Sure. But look at how the internet and email changed the world."

“據(jù)說我們又處于在1992年剛發(fā)明郵件的狀態(tài)了，”他說，“虛擬貨幣有風(fēng)險(xiǎn)嗎？當(dāng)然有。但回首網(wǎng)絡(luò)和郵件給世界帶來的變化，一切都是值得的。”

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