- The South Korean Won (KRW) surpassed the US Dollar (USD) as the top fiat currency traded with cryptocurrencies in Q1 2024.
- Intense competition among South Korean crypto exchanges and a zero-fee campaign significantly increased market activity.
Cryptocurrency market data, analytics, indices, and research firm, Kaiko Data, recently reported that the South Korean Won (KRW) was the top fiat currency traded with cryptocurrencies in Q1 of 2024.
Additionally, according to Kaiko Data, a better macroeconomic climate and intense competition among Korean exchanges have increased trading volumes in Korean markets, reaching their highest level in over two years in early March.
📊Competition on Korean markets is heating up. In this week's Data Debrief, we explore:
— Kaiko (@KaikoData) April 15, 2024
👉The fee war in South Korea
👉The market reaction to Uniswap Labs Wells Notice
👉Coinbase's growing dominance
and more....https://t.co/pVQvJfZIlS
KRW surpassed the USD in trading volume on centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, reaching over $456 billion compared to the dollar's $455 billion. In contrast, trading pairs denominated in euros accumulated only $59 billion, ranking third in total volume for the first quarter of 2024.
Moreover, Kaiko Data also addresses the “The fee war in South Korea”. It states that cryptocurrency exchange Upbit has led the South Korean crypto market since early 2021, holding an average market share of 82% over three years.
Despite this, Bithumb and Korbit have been competing hard. Bithumb increased its market share threefold after starting a zero-fee campaign in late 2023, while Korbit's share remained under 1% in 2024. Although Bithumb's trade volume grew, its revenue fell by 60% in 2023. This loss led to the end of its zero-fee campaign just five months after it began, on February 5th.
Edited by Harshajit Sarmah
