‘Weak Crypto Market’ made Kraken Quit Japan Second Time.

Kraken, with its subsidiary Payward Asia, worked in Japan from 2018 to April 2018.
They re-entered in October 2020 for the second term and will leave on January 31, 2023.
All the users can withdraw their holding till the last day of January 2023.

The crypto market seems to be crawling in 2022, while it was galloping during this time last year. Bitcoin has just touched the $68,000 mark, and people were rooting for $100,000. But time had other plans, and now BTC is trading at $16,623.50. There are many reasons behind this pace, which has caused noteworthy industry damage. Recently Kraken, a global cryptocurrency exchange, announced that they will no longer be operating in Japan from January 31, 2023.

In a blog post on December 28, Kraken said that they decided to end their operation in the land of the rising sun amid a “weak crypto market” and would be deregistered from the Financial Services Agency by January 31, 2023. As a part of prioritizing their resources and investments.

“Current market conditions in Japan in combination with a weak crypto market globally mean the resources need to further grow our business in Japan aren’t justified at this time. As a result. Kraken will no longer service clients in Japan through Payward Asia.”

Paywars Asia Inc. is Kraken’s Japanese-facing exchange subsidiary and has operated from 2014 to April 2018. The exchange had previously withdrawn from Japan, citing their need for better focus in other geographical areas.

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 ending, and Kraken is committed to all the affected clients that they can withdraw their funds before January 31, 2023.

Regarding withdrawal process

Users have multiple options; they can either withdraw holdings to external wallets or convert them to Japanese Yen, which could then be transferred to a domestic bank account. All withdrawal limits will be removed in January, and a process to retrieve staked ETH will also be in place shortly. Trading will continue; however, deposits will not be allowed after January 9, 2023.

Possible reasons

The whole industry is suffering due to lower trading volumes; the majority of investors are waiting for the waves to settle after the recent storm. Specifying the current market condition Kraken laid off 30% of their global workforce, meaning 1,100 employees.

Kraken said cutting down the workforce and expenses was necessary for survival in the long-term scenario.

Despite their exit from Japan and recent job cuts, Kraken is confident that these steps shall not affect their overall growth in different parts of the world.

Ongoing crypto winter, Terra ecosystem collapse, FTX saga, etc., are like tornadoes hitting the crypto industry throughout 2022. The basic requirement at this time is survival, waiting out the storm to pass, in the meantime, sanding the rough edges and being ready in all senses to take on the world once again.

Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while his post-graduation. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing along with being a developer. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing