- Coinbase has announced that its Japan operations have been halted.
- The exchange has cited “market conditions” for the move.
- Customers are advised not to withdraw funds after the deadline
Coinbase today announced its plans to reduce operating costs by 25%, following the announcement of its plans last week. announced It has also ceased operations in Japan.
It seems that the exchange is taking drastic measures to prevent it from becoming like other crypto firms which have gone bankrupt due to liquidity problems. In today’s announcement, the exchange cited market conditions as the reason behind the halting of operations in the third-largest economy in the world.
The announcement was made as follows:
“Due to market conditions, our company has made the difficult decision to halt operations in Japan and to conduct a complete review of our business in the country. However, we are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for our valued customers.”
Feb. 16 deadline to withdraw assets
Coinbase will end fiat deposit functionality beginning January 20, 2023. After that, Japanese customers will have until February 16, 2020 to withdraw fiat or crypto assets.
Customers will have the ability to withdraw their assets from any Coinbase wallet, self-custody wallet or other cryptocurrency service provider. They can also choose to liquidate their assets and withdraw in form of JPY, Japan’s national currency.
Customers will need to contact the Legal Affairs Bureau in order to collect their balances after the deadline has expired.
The statement was as follows:
“In the month following February 17th, Coinbase will send any remaining JPY to a Guaranty Account at the Legal Affairs Bureau in accordance with legal requirements. If customers do not take any action before February 16th, they will have to coordinate with the Legal Affairs Bureau to retrieve their JPY balance.”
