Bitcoin price prediction continues to remain bearish, however, the double bottom support level may halt the downtrend near $16,570. On December 28, the BTC/USD began trading at $16,719, reaching the highest and lowest values are $16,586.00 and $16,759.00, respectively. The BTC/USD pair is now trading at $16,673, down 0.92% in 24 hours.
In addition, its value has dropped by more than 1.5% in the last week.
The US-based cryptocurrency exchange Kraken announced on December 28 that it will cease operations in Japan the following month due to the country's current market conditions and the global crypto market's poor performance.
According to Kraken, as of January 31, the financial services agency (JFSA) will no longer recognize Kraken as a financial services provider. Customers must therefore withdraw their fiat and cryptocurrency holdings before that date. The exchange is "fully funded to ensure that all affected clients can withdraw their assets in a timely manner," according to Kraken.
It also advised customers to sell their fiat currency and cryptocurrency holdings. Kraken ceased operations in Japan in 2018, citing increased business expenses. Two years later, the company relaunched with a Tokyo headquarters.
Furthermore, just days before making its statement, Kraken announced plans to lay off 1,100 employees as part of a sector-wide downturn following the demise of FTX and its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried. As a result of the poor market conditions, the company announced a 30% reduction in staff.
In 2022, cryptocurrency values have plummeted, with BTC/USD losing roughly two-thirds of its value since the start of the year.
The American depositary shares (ADS) of the bitcoin mining company Argo blockchain are no longer
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