Coinbase halting operations in Japan a week after laying off hundreds of employees
Cryptocurrency exchange will cut 20% of its workforce to contend with ‘market disruptions’
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A week after Coinbase announced it would cut a fifth of its workforce, the crypto exchange is now halting its operations in Japan due to market conditions and will conduct a complete review of its business in the country.
According to a company release, any remaining crypto holdings on Coinbase on or after Feb. 17, will be converted to Japanese yen. If customers do not take any action before Feb. 16, they will have to coordinate with the Legal Affairs Bureau to retrieve their yen balance.
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"We want to assure you that we have segregated the Japanese Yen and crypto assets of our customers in custody in compliance with the regulations, and we are committed to ensuring that all our customers can withdraw their assets at their earliest convenience," Coinbase said.
The cryptocurrency exchange entered the Japanese market in June 2021. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae / AP Newsroom)
Last week, Coinbase announced that it's cutting 20% of its workforce as it contends with disruptions within cryptocurrency markets.
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The layoffs, which will impact roughly 950 workers, are part of a restructuring plan to help the company reduce operating expenses as market conditions continue to impact the cryptoeconomy, Coinbase said in their filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COIN | COINBASE GLOBAL INC. | 305.85 | +27.01 | +9.69% |
Over the past year, bitcoin has plunged almost 60%. The volatile year got even worse in late 2022 with the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which filed for bankruptcy protection in November after experiencing the equivalent of a bank run.
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Coinbase did not respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
FOX Business' Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.