After a single-day test run in a Frankfurt train station, the world’s first gold bar-dispensing ATM opened to much fanfare in the lobby of the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi in 2010.

 

Since its debut in the UAE, a small but mighty array of these counterintuitive little machines have cropped up around the world – arguably the most fitting of which can be found in the lobby of Las Vegas’ Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino.

 

Guarded by armoured guards, these glittering ATM spit out 24-karat gold in 320 different forms, from gold bars and coins to wearable jewellery, in varying weights. The customer simply has to operate a touch screen to make his selection, pay with cash or credit, and watch his booty pop out of the machine packaged in a sweet-looking black case.