BTC – These are initials you will see quite often in the future if you haven't familiarized yourself with them yet. The initials are the official symbol of a new digital currency that is giving an enormous amount of publicity to the same old competitive edge of the free market: Bitcoin.

Recently, Lamassu has also been getting some media coverage as it has presented the world's first Bitcoin ATM, a device that allows you to deposit US dollars and convert them into Bitcoins that would later arrive in a digital wallet. The company will be introducing its Bitcoin Machine on May 17 at the Bitcoin Foundation's Bitcoin 2013 conference. The Bitcoin machine has but one simple purpose: To easily facilitate transactions in which customers would convert any world currency into Bitcoins.

The machine that was presented in Liberty Forum earlier this year was capable of dispensing Bitcoins. It has successfully facilitated $5,500 worth of Bitcoin conversions. Today, those same Bitcoins are worth $25,000.

Some speculate that this might be the start of a new bubble, known as the “Bitcoin Bubble.” However, the value of Bitcoin was not artificially increased, as would be the case with most bubbles. More than likely, new competitors will join the fray and lower the value of the Bitcoin to something more stable, but we won't be seeing something as catastrophic as the housing bubble that caused the 2007 crisis. The increase in Bitcoin's value is due to the desperate need for a more stable currency that is not subject to artificial increases and decreases. The recent confiscation of money in Cyprus has inspired people to experiment with the currency and conduct their business with Bitcoin instead of the Euro.

About the Bitcoin Machine, Lamassu's co-founder Zach Harvey said, “Vendors will profit both from commissions on the automatic exchange, and by accepting Bitcoin at their establishment in return for goods or services. Additionally, the price point is quite low compared to legacy ATMs, so it's easy for the vendor to make the investment back.”

Lamassu's machine has already received a lot of coverage from CNET, Reason Magazine, and American Banker, giving it the strong media clout it needs to sell. Hopefully, digital currencies like Bitcoin will rise up as an answer to the unpredictable and stagnant economic climate businesses are forced to operate in today.