Thought those vending machines that dispense iPods were cool? Well, China has just upped the ante. The country has unveiled the first gold vending machine in a busy shopping district in Beijing. Shoppers on the ultra-luxurious Wangfujing Street can insert cash or use a bank card to withdraw gold bars or coins of various weights based on market prices.
Each withdrawal is capped at 2.5 kilograms (5.5 pounds) or one million yuan (about $156,500) worth of gold. The machine was launched Saturday by the Beijing Agricultural Commercial Bank and a gold trading company.
They plan to install an unspecified number of machines in secure locations such as gold shops and upmarket private clubs.
