The cryptocurrency market, regardless of the ongoing “mini bull run,” is still a long way from its 2021 levels, with companies laying off staff and some even closing operations. The latest on the list of firms halting services is Coinbase.  Per a recently published blog post by Coinbase, the crypto exchange company said it would be closing down its operations in Japan. 

The exchange said the halting of operations in Japan has no effect on its other official branches across the globe. Coinbase Japanese customers are to withdraw their crypto and fiat holdings by February 16. The company stated it would conduct a complete review of its business in the country following the market conditions closing in.

Coinbase Halts Operation In Japan, Cites Market Conditions 

Published on January 18, Coinbase stated in the announcement the operation halt in Japan is a difficult decision. However, Coinbase will thoroughly review business in Japan and terminate transactions with existing customers in the country.

Customers who fail to withdraw their crypto holdings before February 16 will have to coordinate with the Legal Affairs Bureau to retrieve their balance. The company will convert all remaining crypto holdings to Japanese yen (JPY). According to Coinbase, the reason behind the shutting down of operations in Japan is due to the extreme market conditions and its plans to reduce operating expenses in 2023. 

Coinbase’s VP Nana Murugesan and Coinbase Japan CEO Nao Kitazawa said, “Due to changes in the market environment, we have made the difficult decision to completely review our current business in Japan and terminate transactions with existing customers. However, we are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for our valued customers.”

Aside from giving a due date to withdraw funds, it has also provided Japanese customers with various options for withdrawing all their crypto holdings from the exchange. According to the digital asset exchange firm, customers can withdraw their crypto assets to either Coinbase Wallet, other self-hosted wallets, or other cryptocurrency exchanges.

Coinbase Making It To The Headline In Recent Weeks

This is not Coinbase’s first news to make it to the headlines over the past few weeks. A week ago, the exchange laid off about 1,000 of its employees as part of a critical strategy to weather down the crypto winter. As reported by Bitcoinist, this was the company’s third round of layoffs as macroeconomic conditions and persistent downside pressure the nascent sector.

Moreover, the crypto exchange also made it to the headline earlier this week as XRP investors filed a class action lawsuit against the cryptocurrency exchange. The reason behind the lawsuit was due to the company’s exception in distributing Flare Network Tokens (FLR) to XRP holders. 

While the company has continued to make it to the headline negatively over the past weeks, the exchange COIN stock price has carried on with a bullish trend, ending Tuesday with an added 8% to its value and up nearly 45% in the last five days.

COIN’s price is currently hovering around $54.14 at the time of writing, up 8.32% in the previous 24 hours.