Until now, the reasons that motivated the exchanges to restrict their services are unknown.
According to an announcement published by the Binance website in Japan, users residing in the Asian country will be limited when using the services of the crypto exchange house. The publication issued on Wednesday, January 15th, specifies that the restriction will soon be enabled, without giving details about the exact date of its activation until now.
The note explains that the limitation will increase step by step so the restriction will be administered in steps. The details of the services that will be limited have not been specified and the company will reveal them in future announcements. Currently, Japan has no restrictions and its users of the platform can access all the services offered by the exchanges.
Binance has had some problems with the location of its headquarters for some years. Binance would have moved its headquarters to Japan after officially leaving the Chinese territory.
In 2018, the company had to change its headquarters to Malta, after they received a warning notification from the Japanese authorities, who argued that the exchanges do not have the appropriate license to operate in the country.
After the official exit of Binance from the Japanese territory caused by national regulations, many exchange companies decided to register their operations with the authorities. On the one hand, obtaining the operating license in Japan allows the wide development of the activities of these exchanges. On the other hand, some limitations imposed by Japan make impossible for exchange companies to offer some services; they are obliged to follow restrictive safety regulations according to their laws.
According to data provided by Japan authorities, Binance and Huobi has a direct competence among those companies that managed to receive the operating license at the beginning of 2019. In the same year but in September, the recognized exchange BitBox, which operates with more than 30 cryptocurrencies, from the Japanese company LINE, obtained permission to offer its crypto services to Japanese users.
Due to these limitations in terms of compliance with the country’s regulations, Binance may face operational barriers despite not having its headquarters in the Asian country. In a similar case, the US cryptocurrency exchange Kraken had to stop offering its services to users living in Japan. This happened in April 2018.
Among the main reasons why Kraken stopped operating, it is highlighted that, according to company data, the increase in the costs necessary for business in the Japanese territory would have limited their commercial rank. This could also be a compelling reason, taking into account all the requirements needed to obtain the license. However, the company could operate again in Japan in the future.
Binance, until now, has not issued a statement explaining in detail the reasons that generated the restrictions or if this would mean the termination of its services in Japan for the future. The crypto community waits for answers.
By María Rodríguez
