South Korean digital currency Exchange Prixbit has announced the termination of its all crypto-related services.
Though the exchange did not specify any specific reason behind the harsh move, according to BusinessKorea, it was accelerated by the financial difficulties faced by the exchange.
First announced on August 9 on the exchange’s website, the exchange has now completely closed its services and initiated refunds to its clients.
“Due to negative internal and external influences, management difficulties could not be overcome and normal operation became impossible,” the founder of the exchange stated.
According to the notice, the exchange tackled with serious issues including hacking, money laundering, and voice phishing; however, now it had to close its business.
Prixbit assured its customers that they would receive a full refund and asked them to provide customer details necessary for a refund process as soon as possible.
It also detailed that most of the refunds involving the exchange’s native tokens - PRX and GRX - has already been completed.
Looming woes for South Korean exchanges
Despite being a major market for crypto trading, most of the crypto exchanges in South Korea are struggling to continue their operations. Except for four major digital asset exchanges in the country, others don’t have access to the banking ecosystem, so they cannot offer fiat-based services.
This also resulted in low trading volume in those exchanges, making it hard to sustain operations.
Moreover, many South Korean Blockchain companies are seeking overseas listing for their coins as many foreign exchanges are offering won-denominated services to lure the companies.
Another BusinessKorea report recently pointed out that 97 percent of crypto exchanges in the peninsular country are on the verge of bankruptcy.
Though major exchanges in South Korea are doing comparatively well, Coinone recently announced that it is going to shut its Malta-based subsidiary.
