Bitget will stop providing cryptocurrency trading services for Japanese users and will close all local user positions by the end of the year

According to CoinDesk, the cryptocurrency trading platform Bitget announced that it will stop providing trading services to residents of Japan and plans to close all remaining positions by December 31, 2026.

Bitget has stopped accepting new registration applications from Japanese users as of Sunday. Existing users who believe the platform has mistakenly identified them as Japanese residents need to complete secondary identity verification and submit proof of address by November 1.

Bitget stated that accounts that do not complete verification will enter "liquidation-only mode" starting November 1, where users will not be able to open new positions or use services such as spot trading, contract trading, copy trading, trading bots, and yield products, but they can still deposit and withdraw within the limits.

The platform will forcibly close all remaining positions on December 31 and suspend bank card services. Users will still be able to withdraw assets thereafter.

Bitget stated that this move is to comply with local regulatory requirements in Japan. Recently, Japan passed relevant legislation to reclassify crypto assets as financial instruments, and unregistered operating crypto platforms may face fines of up to approximately $62,800 and up to 10 years in prison in the future.