Coinbase to close majority of Japan operations following global layoffs: Report

Vice President of International and Business Development, Nana Murugesan, said that the firm decided to “wind down” the majority of its operations in Japan.

Crypto exchange Coinbase will be closing down most of its operations in Japan as part of its efforts to survive in the bear market. The move is part of the company’s restructuring plan and follows the recent announcement that it would reduce its employees by 20%. 

In an interview with BNN Bloomberg, Coinbase executive Nana Murugesan said that most of the operations in Japan will be closed. “We’ve decided to wind down the majority of our operations in Japan, which led to eliminating most of the roles in our Japan entity,” said Murugesan.

While the executive did not dive into specifics, he noted that a small number of employees in the Japanese branch would stay to make sure that customer assets are secure.

While the crypto exchange did not comment on mergers and acquisitions, in a Bloomberg interview, a Coinbase spokesperson said they are looking into every possible option. “We are carefully evaluating all options and will communicate any further updates as they become available,” they said. 

On Jun 14, the crypto exchange had already slashed its headcount by 18% because of the uncertainty in market conditions. Back then, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that the company had grown very quickly and that employee costs were too high to manage effectively through the uncertain market conditions. Armstrong also cited the recession as he announced the layoffs.

Related: Crypto layoffs mount as exchanges continue to be ravaged by the prevailing bear market

Coinbase is not the only crypto trading platform to lay off its workforce amid the crypto winter. On Jan. 6, crypto trading platform Huobi also confirmed that it plans to cut off 20% of its staff, citing market conditions. On Dec. 4, Bybit exchange also announced a second batch of layoffs to survive the bear market. The layoffs came as Bybit CEO Ben Zhou announced a reorganization plan amid the crypto winter.