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Kraken Exits Japan For Second Time Due To “Weak Crypto Market”

Delbert Williams IIBy No Comments2 Mins Read

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Kraken, a global cryptocurrency exchange, has decided to withdraw from Japan for the second time, citing resource pressure in a “weak cryptocurrency market.”

In a December 28 blog post, Kraken said it has decided to cease operations in Japan and deregister with the Financial Services Agency by January 31, 2023.

“The current market conditions in Japan and the weakness of the global cryptocurrency market means that the resources needed to further grow our business in Japan are not justified at this time.”

“As a result, Kraken will no longer serve Japanese clients through Payward Asia,” he added.

Kraken’s Japanese exchange is operated by its subsidiary, Payward Asia Inc.

The same subsidiary operated in Japan from 2014 to 2018, but exited in April 2018, allowing it to focus more resources on growth in the rest of the world. .

In October 2020, the subsidiary decided to reopen with headquarters in Tokyo, offering physical trading of five major assets and plans to expand. The second iteration is now closed and Kraken has promised that all affected clients will be able to withdraw their funds from the exchange no later than January 31, 2023.

Users can withdraw their cryptocurrency holdings to an external wallet or convert their portfolio to Japanese Yen and transfer it to a domestic bank account. Withdrawal restrictions will be lifted in January, and a process will also be put in place to allow users to share staked Ether (ETH) immediately.

Deposits will expire on January 9th, but trading functionality will remain.

Kraken appears to have focused on cutting costs in recent months.

On November 30, Kraken announced that it had made one of its “hardest decisions” to cut approximately 1,100 jobs worldwide in a difficult market environment. This corresponds to his 30% of the personnel.

Related: Kraken Cuts Headcount By 30% To Survive Crypto Winter

The exchange said lower trading volumes and fewer customer signups contributed to Kraken’s decision to cut costs, and that the change was necessary “to sustain the business in the long term.”

In the Japanese version of its latest announcement, Kraken added that exiting the Japanese market would not have a material impact on Kraken’s overall business.