Kraken to cease its operations in Japan due to market conditions

Kraken will cease its operations in Japan as of Jan. 31, 2023 and will deregister its crypto asset exchange business registered with the Financial Services Agency in the country, the company said Wednesday. Due to market conditions in Japan and the global crypto market slump, "the resources needed to further grow our business in Japan aren’t justified at this time," it said. As a result, Kraken won't service clients in Japan through Payward Asia. Affected Kraken clients will have until Jan. 31, 2023 to withdraw their fiat and crypto holdings from the company's platform. Withdrawal limits will be lifted for affected accounts during the month of January. As of Jan. 9, the function for new deposits will be suspended, but the trading function will still be available until Jan. 31. The decision will not have a material impact on Kraken's overall business, it added. The move comes after Kraken cut its global workforce by ~1,100, or 30% , to adapt to market conditions. Last week, Kraken appointed Greg Reid as CEO and president.