Coinbase to Halt Operations in Japan
- Coinbase recently announced plans to layoff 20% of its workforce.
- Several crypto companies are still suffering from the November implosion of FTX.
- Japan’s pro-crypto Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to offer full support to Web3 firms and invest in the country’s digital sector.
Less than a month after Kraken, another dominant digital asset exchange, announced its exit from Japan, Coinbase Global is shutting down its operations there. Coinbase said the decision to halt operations in Japan was due to “market conditions,” adding that the company plans to “conduct a complete review of our business in the country.”
Coinbase, which is based in San Francisco, explained in a blog post that it remains “committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for our valued customers.” Customers have until February 16 to withdraw their cash and cryptocurrency holdings.
As per the post, Coinbase will convert any crypto still held after February 17th to yen. Customers will have to retrieve any remaining funds themselves from a Guaranty Account at the Legal Affairs Bureau if they fail to withdraw their assets within the given time. Fiat deposits will also be unavailable beginning January 20.
The company stated that customers can transfer their assets to Coinbase Wallet, a self-custodial wallet, or any other virtual asset service provider. Additionally, clients can liquidate their holdings and withdraw money into a local bank account.
Since FTX imploded in November, a number of companies have suffered from investors’ decreasing interest in cryptocurrencies. As investors abandon riskier assets, rising interest rates and concerns about an economic slowdown have added to the pressure on the cryptocurrency market.
This year has seen more problems for the cryptocurrency industry, including declining deposits, layoffs, and several legal obstacles. Huobi, Coinbase, and Crypto.com have all declared plans to let go of roughly 20% of their respective staff members, and sources claim that Genesis has also slashed employment by 30%.
Coinbase’s shares lost about 86% of their value last year, following the collapse of the crypto market, which saw cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, dogecoin, and ether lose a chunk of their value.
While Coinbase has announced its departure from Japan, its rival, Binance, is making moves to return to the Asian nation it left in 2018. Binance requested permission to return to Japan last September and purchased the local exchange Sakura in November.
Lawrence has covered some exciting stories in his career as a journalist, he finds blockchain-related stories very intriguing. He believes Web3 will change the world and wants everyone to be a part of it.
