Even if the Bitcoin price has returned to where it was before the FTX crash, the sector is still negatively affected by the contagion, which has forced cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to cease operations in Japan.

Due to the current state of the market, Coinbase made the decision on January 18 to publicly state that the company would close its offices in Japan and conduct an in-depth analysis of its operations in the country. By February 16, all Coinbase Japan customers will have about a month to remove any fiat currency or cryptocurrency assets of the site.

After February 17, all cryptocurrency assets still held by Coinbase Japan customers will be immediately converted to Japanese Yen (JPY). After January 20, it will no longer be possible to make deposits in fiat money.

He outlined the principles that customers would have the ability to transfer their assets to any other virtual asset service provider, a self-custody wallet, or Coinbase Wallet if they wish. Clients also have the option to liquidate their portfolios and transfer their assets to a bank account in their home country.

Coinbase emphasized that the platform is dedicated to making service termination as smooth as possible, assuring consumers that all users will be able to withdraw their funds as soon as possible.

According to previous reports, Coinbase began the planning stages for its entry into Japan amid the weak market of 2018. Coinbase is the latest major cryptocurrency exchange to pull out of Japan, following in the footsteps of Kraken, which made the same decision. at the end of 2022 to end its commercial activities in the country.

The exchange said it experienced comparable problems in Japan, noting the country’s underdeveloped cryptocurrency sector.

Kraken and Coinbase have drastically reduced the size of their workforce, with Kraken terminating the employment of thirty percent of their workforce shortly after the FTX exchange crash in November. Coinbase, which had already cut its staff by 18% the previous year, declared in January that it would cut another 20% of its employees.