Status Updates
UPDATE May 2021 – All of our Crypto Vending Machines have been stolen by the FBI in a March 16th coordinated raid. They also arrested several cryptocurrency advocates. You can learn more at TheCryptoSix.com
About Shire Cryptocurrency Vending
Bitcoin (BTC) was the most important change to happen to money in generations. By decentralizing control of money out of the hands of the warmongering state and the banks, you get an amazing form of money with low fees that is accepted worldwide by countless businesses. Since Bitcoin’s launch in 2009, hundreds of competitors have popped up. We can’t really say if any one of Bitcoin’s competitors is better than the others, but DASH and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) have been highly used at Keene retailers all three – BTC, DASH, BCH – for sale at our Cryptocurrency Vending Machine (CVM) locations at the Bitcoin Embassy NH in Keene and Murphy’s Taproom in Manchester. In 2020 we added top privacy coin Monero (XMR) to these two locations as well.
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are widespread in the Shire. Shire Society members appreciate money that doesn’t require asking anyone’s permission to use it. Cryptocurrency is easy to use and works well. You can see an interactive map of some local businesses that accept crypto and here’s another map that shows retailers accepting crypto and the last time someone used it at each location.
Cryptocurrency transactions keep your value away from predators like the state, whose paper dollars they can endlessly print and use to go to war around the world. Since cryptocurrency like Bitcoin is not subject to the whims of politicians, it is therefore one of the greatest tools for peace in addition to personal empowerment. That’s why the Shire Free Church launched what was then called “Shire BTC Vending” on November 5th, 2014 when we placed our first Crypto Vending Machine at a store in Keene.
The goal of Shire Crypto Vending is not to profit, but to assist in spreading cryptocurrency so as to foster peace, the church’s mission. Funds earned from our Crypto Vending Machines are invested in our cryptocurrency outreach and other church outreach projects.
For instance, after finally covering the cost of buying the CVMs, in October of 2016 we launched :60 advertisements for months on local radio and TV in Keene to promote the businesses in the area that are accepting bitcoin! The ads are a great introduction to Bitcoin for area consumers, positioning Bitcoin as an international, but also very local currency. Around here, “It’s Keene to buy local”, and the second ad in the series makes clear the benefits to our community when businesses stop sending 3% of their sales to credit card companies by adopting cryptocurrency and encouraging customers to do the same. Later in 2017, we launched months of print ads promoting Bitcoin in the Monadnock region.
In April of 2015, the Keene machine was upgraded to the Lamassu brand Bitcoin Vending Machine. The Lamassu was created in the Shire by libertarians.
Crypto Vending Machine at the Bitcoin Embassy in Keene, NH
After more than a year of operation in Keene, we launched a second CVM in Manchester in January 2016 at Murphy’s Taproom on Elm St., which is basically Manchester’s main street.
In 2017, Keene’s unit was upgraded to a top-of-the-line General Bytes brand machine in Spring of 2018. The original Keene Lamassu was then moved downtown to the Keene State College neighborhood.
It’s important to note that the church’s Crypto Vending Machines are not ATMs, though many confuse the two terms. The machines sell a digital product, cryptocurrency, for cash, like any other vending machine. The machines are stocked with crypto and sell from that inventory. The CVM is not making purchases for the customer on an exchange. Machines that do that have ridiculous identification requirements. Your crypto is your business and as a donator to the church, your privacy is respected. While our machine does not require identification, there is security monitoring the premises.
Locations & Hours
We used to have several machines, but now have none, thanks to the FBI raid on March 16th! Learn more at TheCryptoSix.com
