Coinbase is shuttering services for customers in Japan as crypto winter rages on
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- Coinbase is suspending the crypto exchange's operations in Japan.
- Customers in Japan have until February 16 to withdraw their holdings.
- Coinbase stock is up 53% in the past five days as crypto markets rally.
Coinbase said Wednesday it will soon shutter the cryptocurrency exchange's services in Japan, citing difficult market conditions.
Customers in Japan have until February 16 to withdraw their crypto and fiat holdings from the platform. Users can move their funds to other self-hosted wallets of their choice or liquidate their portfolio and withdraw to a domestic bank account, per the announcement.
Any remaining digital asset holdings held on Coinbase will be converted to Japanese yen after February 17.
"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," a Coinbase blog post said. "However, we are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for our valued customers."
The news comes amid a difficult time for the industry, which has slashed nearly two-thirds of its market cap since its all-time high in November of 2021. Major cryptos like bitcoin have been trending upwards in recent weeks but are still off 68% from its peak, according to Messari.
Coinbase stock was up 3.86% at $56.23 on Wednesday. The share price has surged 53% in the past five days on the rally in crypto markets and the company's steep layoffs.
Last week, CEO Brian Armstrong said the company will chop 20% of its workforce in a cost-cutting effort to help the exchange weather the troubles roiling the crypto market. The exchange plans to slash 950 jobs in a bid to reduce its operating expenses by 25%, he said in a blog post.