Japan's Coincheck exchange reinstated Japanese yen withdrawals yesterday and investors are already flocking to take out their funds following the firm's recent hack.
According to a company announcement on Feb. 13, soon after Coincheck partially resumed operations on Tuesday, it had already processed 40.1 billion yen (or $373 million) in withdrawal requests from existing investors. The firm first announced the plan to reopen Japanese yen withdrawals on Feb. 9.
The move comes as the Japanese exchange attempts to normalize after it reported a loss of some $500 million-worth of NEM tokens in a major security breach last month.
The significant amount of Japanese yen withdrawn Tuesday may signal decreasing levels of confidence among Coincheck's existing customers following the loss, as well as amid recent scrutiny by Japan's financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA).
As reported previously, the heist sparked on-site inspection by the FSA to examine the platform's security measures, as well as whether the firm has the financial capability to compensate victims of the hack.
The FSA later stated that Coincheck is one of 16 cryptocurrency exchanges in Japan that have yet to obtain a full operation license due to its security vulnerabilities.
Amid the fiat currency withdrawals, Coincheck has yet to disclose a more detailed timeline regarding compensating victims.
Meanwhile, the company's chief operating officer Yusuke Otsuka said in a press conference on Feb. 13 that the firm has no intention of voluntarily exiting the business, according to Nikkei.
Japanese yen withdrawal image via Shutterstock