Incredible! South Korea’s Cryptocurrency Trading Volume “Surpasses Stock Market,” Bitcoin Kimchi Premium Exceeds 100 Million KRW

Bitcoin price surged again today (11), reaching a high of $71,831. Interestingly, the price of Bitcoin in the BTC/KRW trading pair on the “crazy cryptocurrency trading” Upbit in South Korea has exceeded 100 million Korean won, with a premium of 7.5% in the global market.


BTC/KRW trading pair
Cryptocurrency trading volume in South Korea surpasses the stock market
With the continuous rise in the price of Bitcoin, the total trading volume of South Korea’s “crazy cryptocurrency trading” exchanges has even surpassed the trading volume of the local stock market.
According to local media reports, major cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea set a record-breaking trading volume of 11.8 trillion Korean won (approximately $9 billion) on Sunday, far surpassing the 11.47 trillion Korean won (approximately $8.7 billion) trading volume of the South Korean stock market on Friday. This trading volume reflects the peak enthusiasm of Koreans for cryptocurrencies.
The exchanges that set this record include the five largest Korean won market cryptocurrency trading platforms: Upbit (with a trading volume of 8.8 trillion Korean won), Bithumb (2.7 trillion Korean won), Coinone (176.4 billion Korean won), Gopax (55.2 billion Korean won), and Korbit (32 billion Korean won).


South Korean exchange 24-hour cryptocurrency trading volume | Source: Coingecko
CryptoQuant Founder: Koreans love high-risk investments
Regarding this phenomenon, CryptoQuant founder Ki Young-Ju analyzed, “Koreans prefer high-risk, high-return investment strategies, which is related to their experience of rapid economic growth.” He further explained that as the wealth gap widens, more and more people are turning to cryptocurrency investments, especially altcoins, because they are more attractive compared to mainstream assets such as Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH).
On the other hand, Bradley Park, the Head of Research at CryptoQuant, pointed out that even though the trading prices of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other tokens on Korean exchanges are higher than the global market, the trading volume is still very high, indicating strong retail market demand.
He also mentioned the “kimchi premium,” which refers to the phenomenon of cryptocurrency prices on Korean exchanges being higher than the international average, reaching its highest point since May 2022. Park explained that this is often seen as a sign of strong retail demand because Korean investors are willing to pay a higher premium for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.


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