Crypto Demand in South Korea Surges as Bithumb Records 15% of Total Volume

Over the last 48 hours, the daily trading volume of crypto exchanges in South Korea has surged substantially by a range of 10 to 15 percent.

Bithumb, the largest cryptocurrency trading platform in the local market by trading volume, has seen a spike in daily trading volume of the Bitcoin-to-South Korean won pair, which has become the second most liquid trading pair in the global market after the Bitcoin-to-US dollar pair on Bitmex.

Upbit, the second largest exchange in the cryptocurrency exchange market of South Korea, has seen an increase in its daily trading volume of over 186 percent due to an abrupt surge in demand for Bitcoin Cash.

The rise in the volume of Bithumb and other major cryptocurrency exchanges in the local market has primarily been triggered by a growing demand for Bitcoin, the most dominant cryptocurrency in the market.

Throughout the past week, the government of South Korea and local financial authorities have released several positive statements regarding cryptocurrencies and the digital asset exchange market.

Financial Services Commission, the main financial watchdog of South Korea, formally stated that banks are permitted to provide virtual bank accounts to crypto exchanges.

The Seoul Central District Court also ruled in favor of a local cryptocurrency exchange in a dispute with Nonghyup, a major commercial bank in South Korea, and emphasized that banks have to provide fair, transparent, and stable services to crypto exchanges.

Renewed enthusiasm towards the government's positive stance towards the cryptocurrency market and its intent to regulate the sector with practical regulatory frameworks could have led to an increase in demand for cryptocurrencies from local investors.

Apart from Bitcoin Cash, the daily trading volume of most major cryptocurrencies remain relatively low.

While the volume of BCH has increased by seven-fold in 72 hours, the volume of Bitcoin has increased slightly from $4 billion to $4.4 billion.