The South Korean won became the world’s most-traded fiat currency against cryptocurrencies in the first quarter of 2024.
The won accounted for over $456 billion worth of trading volume on centralized crypto exchanges, topping the $455 billion in U.S. dollar volume, according to an April 15 research report by Kaiko.
The research firm attributes the rising dominance of the won to the “fee war” between Korean crypto exchanges. The report noted:
“The improving macroeconomic environment and fierce competition among Korean exchanges has boosted trade volume on Korean markets which hit its highest level in more than two years in early March. In Q1 2024, the South Korean Won surpassed the US Dollar in terms of cumulative trade volume.”
In comparison, Euro-denominated trading pairs only amassed $59 billion worth of cumulative volume, placing in the third place for the first quarter of 2024.
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Crypto fee war among South Korean exchanges intensifies, but Upbit remains the top exchange
As the region’s leading crypto exchange, Upbit has dominated over 82% of South Korea’s crypto market share since 2021.
However, the recent bull run intensified the competition among rival exchanges, with both Bithumb and Korbit exchanges launching zero-fee campaigns in late 2023.
While Korbit’s market share remained below 1%, Bithumb’s market share tripled in the months after the introduction of zero-fee policy trading in October 2023. Yet, the aggressive zero-fee policy led to a large revenue drop for Bithumb, according to Kaiko:
“Despite its aggressive zero-fee strategy and the resulting surge in trade volume, Bithumb’s annual revenue dropped by 60% in 2023. The significant decline in revenue may have prompted the exchange to discontinue its zero-fee campaign on Feb. 5, just five months after its launch.”
The research firm also noted that volumes for the Korean Won declined in early April, expecting a significant rebound with the approval of spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong’s financial regulator has reportedly approved three spot Bitcoin ETFs, which are expected to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in approximately two weeks.
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