Coinbase, one of the largest crypto exchange companies in the United State, announced this week that it is halting its operations in Japan. The decision comes amid the trading slump.

Initially, Coinbase was planning to expand its crypto business but with the market situation, it ended up discontinuing the operation instead. It first launched its Japanese operations on Aug. 18, 2021, and it opened in the country with a partnership deal with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), one of Japan’s largest financial institutions.

Coinbase said on Wednesday this week that the shutdown is part of a larger operational review that may also lead to the total pullout of its business in the region. As per Reuters, the crypto exchange’s decision to stop its Japanese business comes just a few weeks after Kraken, an American crypto exchange and bank, also revealed its plans to cease its operations here this month.

In any case, all customers of Coinbase Japan were advised to withdraw their funds and crypto holdings. They were given until Feb. 16 to do so.

“Due to market conditions, our company has made the difficult decision to halt operations in Japan and to conduct a complete review of our business in the country,” Coinbase Japan’s chief executive officer, Nao Kitazawa, and vice president Nana Murugesan said in a joint statement on the company’s blog page. “However, we are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for our valued customers.

Kitazawa and Murugesan added, “We want to assure you that we have segregated the Japanese Yen and crypto assets of our customers in custody in compliance with the regulations, and we are committed to ensuring that all our customers can withdraw their assets at their earliest convenience.”

The executives further mentioned that Fiat deposit functionality would be taken down on Jan. 20. Customers can withdraw their crypto holdings to any Virtual Assets Service Provider, self-hosted wallet they prefer, and Coinbase Wallet.

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