Huobi Exchange Suspends Services for Japanese Residents

Crypto exchange Huobi notified its Japanese customers via e-mail on Wednesday that it will be closing accounts of users who are residents of Japan. According to Huobi, their decision came up as a result of compliance issues with the Japanese law.

Also read: Huobi Creates Its Own Cryptocurrency Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF)

No Japanese Traders on Huobi

Huobi Pro reportedly plans to remove the Japanese page from its website as of July 2, and stop providing trading services to Japanese residents. Although the announcement is not yet visible on the official company homepage, further details are expected to appear in the coming hours, a Telegram administrator for Huobi said.

On its disclaimer page, Huobi states that the company deals with electronic assets through the internet and telecommunication network, complying with the laws of each country when conducting business activities. Huobi Global Limited is a company registered and established in the Republic of Seychelles, under its relevant laws.

Huobi also notes that it is not registered as a virtual currency exchange business under the “funds settlement law of Japan.” Therefore, it does not conduct any virtual currency exchange business in the country. The company finally points out that it respects the Japanese law and has not solicited any persons who reside in Japan (individuals or corporations).

Over the past few months, the Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) kept imposing new sanctions on cryptocurrency exchanges, towards which some Japanese traders have expressed their frustration. Nevertheless, they also believe that government rules and crypto regulations will benefit the local crypto industry in the long run.

“It’s really problematic that the FSA doesn’t give us the heads-up before announcing business improvement orders for instance that lead to a temporary halt of business [of the company which was issued the business improvement order]. It messes up everything, suddenly,” said Mas Hihara, a Japanese blockchain technologist, ICO adviser and entrepreneur.

In China, despite authorities officially banning virtual currencies from trading in renminbi (CNY), it is rumored in the industry that the Chinese government is still showing interest in the virtual currency. According to some reports, there is a chance that Beijing would actually invalidate the ban on virtual currency trading.

What do you think of Huobi halting trading services for Japanese residents? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images via Shutterstock.

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