Huobi, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, will close its exchange in Thailand permanently on July 1. announced on its website.
This marks Huobi’s short-term expansion into the Southeast Asian country where cryptocurrency adoption is flourishing. According to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, Thailand has one of the highest DeFi adoption rateor decentralized financial services, nestled next to the US and Vietnam.
However, the Thai government has tighten the use of crypto-based payments amid the declining value of cryptocurrencies. The country has eight licensed cryptocurrency exchange platforms since Februarywith Bangkok-based Bitkub leading the pack.
Huobi debut in Thailand just over two years ago when the company doubled down on its global expansion after leaving China, where it was originally founded. In recent years, China has launched a series of curtail cryptocurrency tradingpromote related businesses to move abroad and find foreign customers.
Former Huobi hold A digital asset trading license issued by the Ministry of Finance of Thailand allows users to buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Huobi Token and stablecoin USDT with Thai Baht.
In September, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand revoked Huobi’s license to operate after discovering “defects and shortcomings in Huobi’s management structure and working system, making it impossible for the company to conduct business in compliance with management regulations”.
Huobi said it is in the process of returning users’ assets but will not be responsible for any issues related to its Thailand branch after the platform closes in July.
“We regret that our journey has come to an end and we sincerely thank you for your long-term support,” Huobi Thailand wrote.
