Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken is shutting down its business in Japan

About Kraken

Kraken is a cryptocurrency exchange and bank based in the United States. It was co-founded in 2011 by Jesse Powell. It was considered one of the first bitcoin exchanges to be listed on Bloomberg Terminal. In 2022, Kraken already had $1.1 billion in revenue. As of mid-summer 2022, it is reportedly valued at $10.8 billion USD.

Massive Layoffs

In November, Kraken declared massive layoffs worldwide amid the current global market condition. About 30 percent of the workforce is expected to be cut.

The Quit of the Japanese Market

Japan has recently emerged among the most crypto-supporting markets in the world but is losing a competitive crypto exchange as the year 2022 draws closer to an end. Kraken crypto exchange has decided to exit the Japanese market to cut the cost when the global crypto industry is currently undergoing a slump.

It is predictable that U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Kraken will close its operations in Japan next month, citing the current poor market conditions there and the weak global cryptocurrency market.

Kraken announced on Wednesday that Payward Asia Inc, which operates Kraken's service in Tokyo. Will close trading operations on January 31.

The company plans to ask customers to transfer their crypto tokens to a different wallet or exchange them for legal tender.

Kraken also said it has sufficient funds to ensure that all affected customers are able to withdraw their assets in a timely manner.

Notably, this is the second time Kraken has closed its operations in Japan. The last time was in April 2018, to better focus resources on growth “elsewhere.” But in October 2020, the company decided to restart its Japanese operations. Unfortunately, we all know that it did not last long.

The authorities of Kraken are looking to finalize its deregistration from Japan's Financial Services Agency by January 31, 2023.

Crypto winter

It happened during the crypto winter. 2022 is not a good year for the crypto world. A lot of bad events occurred in the industry. Many investors lost a lot of money amid FTX's collapse. There are widespread doubts about the reliability of cryptocurrencies.