Kimchi Shrinks: Stablecoin Trading Volume Plunges 80% in South Korea

by

Oh, what a sudden turn of events! South Korea’s cryptocurrency market, typically the playground of retail traders with a taste for spot trading, is beginning to show signs of a mild slump. How utterly shocking. 🙄

At the tail end of last year, the daily stablecoin trading volume in South Korea was a robust ₩1 trillion ($730 million). Fast forward six months, and it’s shriveled down to a modest ₩200 billion ($146 million) by June-an 80% drop, because why not? 🌪️

But Why the Sudden Drop in Volume, You Ask?

Well, according to some delightfully revealing data handed over to lawmaker Park Sung-hoon of the People Power Party (yes, you heard that right), the average daily domestic stablecoin trading volume was a humble ₩238 billion in June. A far cry from the dizzying heights of last year. The National Assembly Research Service was kind enough to provide this nugget of joy.

So, this figure is the sum total of trading in US dollar-pegged stablecoins such as USDT, USDC, and USDS. And where, you ask, does this data come from? Oh, just the five major crypto exchanges in South Korea: Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone, and Gopax. Nothing too fancy, really.

Last year, we saw steady growth: ₩174.1 billion in July, ₩304.1 billion in October, and ₩638.1 billion in November. By December, the volume hit ₩1.02 trillion. Things were looking up, weren’t they? Ah, but wait… what goes up must come down. 🎢

This year, however, it’s been a different story. Volumes dipped to ₩923.8 billion in January, ₩879.4 billion in February, and then slumped further to the ₩300 billion range from March to May before crashing down to ₩200 billion in June. Talk about a sudden plunge, eh? 🤷‍♂️

Global Markets Are Laughing-But Not in Korea

Stablecoins are supposed to hold their value steady, like a well-trained dog. They’re pegged to fiat currencies like the US dollar, which makes them the preferred medium for payments in the crypto world. So, when stablecoin trading volume takes a nosedive, it’s like watching your pet dog suddenly forget how to fetch the paper. It’s a bit of a disaster.

This drop is also seen as a sign of less investment overall, implying that South Korea’s trading activity is on the decline. Unlike the global markets, which seem to be in full swing, stablecoins have yet to take the country by storm. Globally, stablecoins are being used for crypto derivatives and even real-world payments. Meanwhile, in South Korea, stablecoins are being treated like the awkward cousin no one invites to the party. 😬

As a result, while the global stablecoin market cap and trading volume have soared this year, South Korea’s crypto derivatives trading is still banned. It’s almost like everyone else is at the beach while South Korea is stuck indoors. 🏖️

Oh, and let’s not forget credit cards, which dominate the market, accounting for nearly 70% of all payment transactions. Stablecoin-based payments? Well, they’re just a tiny blip on the radar. The economy certainly isn’t losing sleep over them.

Crypto Holdings and Trading Volume Take a Dive

But wait, there’s more bad news! South Korea’s overall cryptocurrency trading volume and domestic crypto holdings have also taken a hit. According to the Financial Stability Report from the Bank of Korea, the average daily domestic crypto trading volume was ₩3.2 trillion in June. That’s an 80% drop from ₩17.1 trillion back in December. Ouch.

Domestic crypto holdings also plummeted from ₩121.8 trillion in January to ₩89.2 trillion by June. That’s one heck of a slide. 🛷

The Bank of Korea blames the recent sluggishness in the virtual asset market for the slow growth of domestic stablecoin trading. They also pointed out that the so-called “Trump effect”-the hopes that pro-crypto policies would be rolling in-has pretty much fizzled out. It appears the crypto hype train has derailed. 🚂💥

Read More

2025-10-10 12:40