13 Japanese Exchanges Agree to Suspend Bitcoin Deposits & Withdrawals on August 1

The Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association has officially announced its plan on how best to handle the chance of a Bitcoin protocol split on August 1. Thirteen of the group's bitcoin exchange members, including Coincheck, Gmo-Z, Bitbank, and Bitpoint, will suspend bitcoin deposits and withdrawals on August 1 at 00:00 Japan time.

Suspension of Bitcoin Deposits and Withdrawals

13 Japanese Exchanges Accept Suspend Bitcoin Service on August 1The Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association (JCBA), formerly called the Virtual Currency Business Study Group, announced on Tuesday its official arrange for August 1.

Thirteen bitcoin exchange members of the association have agreed on how best to handle the chance of a Bitcoin protocol split, that will be expected on August 1 at 9:00 am Japan time, the JCBA detailed. “The occurrence of forking affects the transmission and receipt of bitcoins by all bitcoin users, and it's expected that most related virtual currency exchange operators and service providers is likely to be seriously affected.”

The exchanges have collectively declared:

We decided to temporarily stop accepting bitcoin deposits and withdrawals at each exchange…We will stop only the services related to depositing and withdrawing bitcoins, but we will provide our regular services for other virtual currencies and legal currencies.

Thirteen Participating Bitcoin Exchanges

Currently, the following 13 bitcoin exchanges are members of the JCBA that have agreed to this plan.

• Bitbank Inc.
• Bitpoint Japan Co. Ltd.
• Quoine Co. Ltd.
• Fisco Cryptocurrency Exchange Inc.
• Coincheck Co. Ltd.
• Btc Box Co. Ltd.
• Tech Bureau Co. Ltd. (Zaif Exchange)
• GMO-Z.com Coin Co. Ltd.
• Campfire Corporation
• Bit Trade Co. Ltd.
• Bitcrements Bitcoin Exchange
• Tokyo Bitcoin Co. Ltd.
• Minnano Bitcoin

Japan’s largest bitcoin exchange by volume, Bitflyer, is not among the list of members of the association. According to a July 13 article by Nikkei, the exchange has not decided on a plan for the possible disruption, but is expected to come out with one this week.

Applicable Dates and Times

The suspensions will commence on August 1, 2017, at 00:00 Japan time. However, the JCBA warns that “in the event of the fork happening sooner than Aug 1, the suspension date/time may be advanced depending on the situation.”
The official service restart date and time following the network disruption is still “undecided,” the association noted, adding that (loosely translated):

We plan to update the acceptance of bitcoins and the resumption of withdrawals by 16:00 August 4, 2017 (Japan time).

What do you think about the JCBA’s plan to deal with the upcoming disruption? Let us know in the comments section below.