South Korea crypto trading jumps as KOSPI sell-off rattles investors
Upbit data showed KRW/USDT volume jumped as South Korean stocks fell, with analysts pointing to volatility and overseas derivatives demand.
By Theo Nakamura · Staff Writer
· 3 min read
South Korea crypto trading picked up sharply as the country’s stock market sold off, giving retail investors another sign of how quickly money can move when volatility hits. Upbit data cited by Cointelegraph showed trading between the Korean won and Tether’s USDT surged while the KOSPI, South Korea’s main stock benchmark, suffered several days of losses.
Cryptocurrency volumes rose as the KOSPI fell nearly 18% during the week, according to Cointelegraph. The move followed pressure in chipmaker stocks, a key part of the local equity market and a major piece of the broader artificial-intelligence trade that has pulled in investors this year.
On Upbit, South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, volume in the KRW/USDT pair approached 200 billion won, equal to about 140 million USDT, on July 29. That was up from about 20 million USDT on July 25, a 600% increase, according to Upbit data cited by Cointelegraph.
Why did South Korea crypto trading jump?
Analysts pointed to two possible drivers: investors seeking shelter from the stock sell-off and traders trying to profit from sharper price swings. USDT is a stablecoin, meaning it is designed to track the value of the U.S. dollar, so higher won-to-USDT trading can signal demand to move funds into dollar-linked crypto rails.
Seoul Economic Daily reported analysis suggesting capital may have moved out of equities and into crypto during the KOSPI decline. The publication also cited the possibility that investors were using overseas crypto platforms to trade products tied to Korean stocks.
Cho Yoon-sung, a senior researcher at Tiger Research, told Seoul Economic Daily there may have been greater demand for moving money to overseas exchanges or personal wallets in order to trade perpetual stock futures. Perpetual futures are derivative contracts that let traders bet on price moves without owning the underlying asset and without a fixed expiration date.
The same pattern had appeared before the latest rout. Cointelegraph reported that Upbit saw a noticeable volume jump on July 14 after the KOSPI dropped 10% in one day.
South Korea remains one of the more active retail crypto markets, and Cointelegraph noted that younger traders in particular have shown an appetite for risk. Leveraged bets, which use borrowed money or derivatives to amplify exposure, have been a feature of both crypto trading and this year’s AI-related retail stock boom.
What did analysts say about Bitcoin?
Bitwise European head of research Andre Dragosch said Bitcoin had not shown the same stress as semiconductor stocks. In a post on X, he said Bitcoin was “essentially flat since semis peaked in late June,” and described that resilience as unexpected.
In a separate analysis this week, Bitwise said Bitcoin had shown “remarkable outperformance” versus U.S. mega-cap stocks, including the Magnificent 7 and SpaceX-linked exposure. The crypto asset manager said that relative strength stood out while financial conditions tightened.
Bitwise also argued that Bitcoin could be giving early signals about possible future monetary-policy easing by central banks, even as inflation rises and the near-term risk of rate hikes remains. That view is an interpretation from Bitwise, not a confirmed outcome for policy or prices.
This story draws on original reporting from Cointelegraph.
