Bitcoin ATMs could be installed at Canada’s Simon Fraser University as early as this fall, provided university officials approve a pilot project that is under consideration.
Under the proposed initiative, students would be able to use the digital currency to pay for food and other purchases on the university’s Burnaby Mountain campus. It would mark the first implementation of its kind on a college campus.
According to News 1130, Simon Fraser has its own student-run Bitcoin club, and according to club president Michael Yeung, the campus wide initiative intends to integrate with university bookstores. By Yeung’s estimation, all three of the university’s bookstore could be ready to accept Bitcoin payments as soon as early October.
Yeung has been working on the campus-wide plans at Simon Fraser for over half a year. He believes that Bitcoin has the potential to impact world finance and global commerce the same way the Internet has done in the last 20 years.
Though Simon Fraser University has no plans to accept Bitcoin for tuition payments, Yeung remains hopeful that this too will change if the electronic currency goes mainstream.
The university is also considering hosting a three-day international Bitcoin expo on its Vancouver campus later this fall.
Per the club’s website, the Simon Fraser Bitcoin Club was officially recognized by the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) on June 24th, 2013. The Club focuses its efforts on the educating and engaging Canadians on the emerging world of decentralized virtual currencies and the future of money and partakes in the following activities: