Barely a week after laying off 20% of its workforce, popular crypto exchange, Coinbase has shut down its operations in Japan. The crypto exchange announced the development in its Tuesday blog post. According to the announcement, it took the tough decision owing to the prevailing market conditions in the industry.
More so, the crypto exchange plans to conduct a complete review of all its business within the country. But, it assures users of its unalloyed commitment to making the transition as smooth as possible. According to Coinbase, it has already segregated the Japanese Yen and crypto assets of its customers. This, as revealed, is done in compliance with the regulations of the country.
Worth noting, Coinbase also affirms its commitment to ensuring that all its customers withdraw their assets at their earliest convenience. In the announcement, the exchange revealed its plan to remove fiat deposit functionality from January 20, 2023. But, it intends to give all its Japan customers till February 16, 2023 to withdraw their fiat and crypto holdings.
As announced by the exchange, its Japanese customers can withdraw their crypto holdings to any other virtual assets service provider, or Coinbase wallet. Also, it revealed that customers can also choose to liquidate their portfolio and withdraw their JPY to a domestic bank account.
Meanwhile, Coinbase vows to convert remaining crypto holdings held in its custody after February 17 to JPY. A month after that day, the exchange plans to send any remaining JPY to a Guaranty Account at the Legal Affairs Bureau. This thus means those who failed to meet up would have to engage the Bureau to retrieve their balance.
Coinbase struggling amid prevailing crypto winter
Recall that last week, the struggling cryptocurrency exchange slashed its expenses by 25%. The attempt to reduce expenses resulted in the reduction of its workforce by 20%. The layoff highlighted the struggles of Coinbase since the inception of the crypto winter last year.
More so, the layoff amounts to the second time Coinbase would reduce its workforce within the space of six months. Binbits reported that the CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange, Brian Armstrong gave a hint about dislodging projects with less success rate from its services. A possible pointer to the recent pullout from the Japanese Market.
Worth establishing that the cryptocurrency exchange attached its struggles to the prevailing downturn in the prices of virtual assets. Though there are pointers that Coinbase is struggling due to its exposure to FTX, a claim Brian Armstrong dislodged on different occasions.
Despite its struggles, the CEO of Coinbase registered hope in the strength of the industry to overcome compelling pressure. Armstrong noted that the increasing introduction of regulatory policies will support the crypto industry in recovery.
Read More: