Kraken, a US based cryptocurrency exchange, is planning to halt its operations in Japan and deregister from the country’s regulatory agency’s books as of January 31st, 2022.
The crypto exchange noted that the move is a result of“current market conditions” in Japan as well as a weak global crypto market.
Kraken is currently operating its business in around 60 countries. In the first quarter of 2022 the crypto exchange secured a trading licence in the UAE.
Kraken released its official statement that stated: “The decision is part of Kraken’s efforts to prioritise resources and investments in those areas that align with our strategy and will best position Kraken for long-term success.”
It is not the first time Kraken has shuttered its Japanese operations; the exchange halted its operation in 2018 after it secured registration from regulators.
However, the company returned in October 2020 and relaunched its Tokyo HQ, offering spot trading in five major assets with future expansion plans. Sadly, the second tenure is also ending, and Kraken is committed to all the affected clients – they can withdraw their funds before January 31st, 2023.
Kraken is one of the largest crypto exchanges globally with a 24-hour trading volume of around $428,917,817.The crypto exchange has an active user base of 4 million globally and is ranked third by CoinMarketCap in terms of trading volume.
Crypto Winter and the unusually harsh winter in the US
Crypto Winter,TerraUST and FTX collapse are like cyclones that wreaked havoc in the crypto industry through 2022. The basic requirement at this time is survival, waiting out the storm to pass.
Arca CIO, Jeff Dorman, said in a recent interview that due to the impact of FTX collapse on the crypto industry “We could go through a couple of months of stagnant prices.”
The second most traded cryptocurrency, Ethereum, is estimated to dump below $1K in crypto winter. It can be seen that the price of Ethereum has steadily descended since the start of the year, and it saw further downturns after the long-awaited Ethereum network transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake, also known as “The Merge.”
At the time of writing, crypto industry’s leading coin Bitcoin was trading at $16,602.49 with a 24-hour trading volume of $16,108,806,208.
Steve Anderson is an Australian crypto enthusiast. He is a specialist in management and trading for over 5 years. Steve has worked as a crypto trader, he loves learning about decentralisation, understanding the true potential of the blockchain.
Source: https://www.thecoinrepublic.com/2022/12/29/crypto-winters-next-victim-kraken-to-exit-japan-again/