Cryptocurrency Exchange Kraken To Shutter Services In Japan

CoinDesk reported Kraken, the San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange, announced it will shut its doors for investors in Japan on Tuesday.

In a statement released Tuesday, the company said it will end exchange services to Japanese residents, with a planned cutoff date set for late June, the report said.

In addition, Kraken’s statement said overseas Japanese investors who use Japanese banks will still have access to trading activities in the Japanese market, the report said.

Victims of the notorious Mt Gox hack that took place in 2014, CoinDesk reported, will be able to maintain their Kraken account for fund withdrawals should their payment from the ongoing bankruptcy case be approved in court.

While the company attributed the change to “the costs and resources required to maintain service,” it’s important to note the exchange is currently not among trading platforms registered with the Financial Services Agency (FSA), Japan’s financial watchdog, the report said.

Kraken’s move comes at a time when the FSA is strengthening efforts to scrutinize exchanges offering services in the country following the hack of $530 million-worth of the NEM cryptocurrency from the Coincheck exchange in January, the report said.

Most recently, Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange based on trading volume, received a warning letter from the FSA to halt its operations in Japan since the firm is not fully registered with the agency, the report said.

– WN.com, Jack Durschlag