Small South Korean Exchanges Fear Shut Down amid Crypto Sell-Off
- Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax are the heavyweights in South Korea.
- Experts believe it is tougher for small crypto exchanges to achieve sustainable growth.
Small cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea have expressed their fears of closing down amid the ongoing strong crypto sell-off across the board. According to The Korea Times, a total of 26 crypto exchanges, including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, are in operation in the country.
This year, even major exchanges have seen a decline in transaction volume. In the second quarter of this year, the combined crypto transactions of the five exchanges was around $260 billion, which is down by more than 77% from last year.
In March, the US Federal Reserve began its aggressive rate hikes, which led to poor performance for the asset market.
“The four major exchanges, excluding Upbit, are struggling to expand their market shares, but the reality looks tough at a time when the market has lost momentum for a robust rally for the time being. For minor exchanges that cannot operate Korean-won-based crypto transaction services here, it will be much tougher to achieve sustainable growth,” an industry source told The Korea Times.
The outlook remains murky whether crypto market investor sentiment will remain buoyant in the coming months as most monetary authorities, including the Bank of Korea, are expected to maintain their hawkish stance. In addition, The Korea Times noted that a de facto monopoly held by the market leader, Upbit, makes it difficult for small exchanges to join the ranks of major exchanges.
Update on Litecoin and South Korean Authorities
In other news across the South Korean crypto sphere, in response to recent updates to Litecoin (LTC), Bithumb and Upbit, two major South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges, have issued warnings.
A policy in South Korea requiring crypto exchanges to conduct know-your-customer (KYC Know Your Customer (KYC) Know Your Customer (KYC) is the process via which the broker is verifying the true identity of its clients in order to comply with multiple regulations. KYC is used to assess the suitability of customers when it comes to anti-money laundering regulations, any type of financial fraud and determining whether they are potentially risky for the brokerage.In particular, KYC guidelines in financial services mandate that individuals make a cohesive effort to verify the identity, suitability, and risks Know Your Customer (KYC) is the process via which the broker is verifying the true identity of its clients in order to comply with multiple regulations. KYC is used to assess the suitability of customers when it comes to anti-money laundering regulations, any type of financial fraud and determining whether they are potentially risky for the brokerage.In particular, KYC guidelines in financial services mandate that individuals make a cohesive effort to verify the identity, suitability, and risks Read this Term) and anti-money laundering (AML Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Read this Term) procedures was cited by both exchanges. As a result, South Korean exchanges may delist products following these warnings.
Small cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea have expressed their fears of closing down amid the ongoing strong crypto sell-off across the board. According to The Korea Times, a total of 26 crypto exchanges, including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, are in operation in the country.
This year, even major exchanges have seen a decline in transaction volume. In the second quarter of this year, the combined crypto transactions of the five exchanges was around $260 billion, which is down by more than 77% from last year.
In March, the US Federal Reserve began its aggressive rate hikes, which led to poor performance for the asset market.
“The four major exchanges, excluding Upbit, are struggling to expand their market shares, but the reality looks tough at a time when the market has lost momentum for a robust rally for the time being. For minor exchanges that cannot operate Korean-won-based crypto transaction services here, it will be much tougher to achieve sustainable growth,” an industry source told The Korea Times.
The outlook remains murky whether crypto market investor sentiment will remain buoyant in the coming months as most monetary authorities, including the Bank of Korea, are expected to maintain their hawkish stance. In addition, The Korea Times noted that a de facto monopoly held by the market leader, Upbit, makes it difficult for small exchanges to join the ranks of major exchanges.
Update on Litecoin and South Korean Authorities
In other news across the South Korean crypto sphere, in response to recent updates to Litecoin (LTC), Bithumb and Upbit, two major South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges, have issued warnings.
A policy in South Korea requiring crypto exchanges to conduct know-your-customer (KYC Know Your Customer (KYC) Know Your Customer (KYC) is the process via which the broker is verifying the true identity of its clients in order to comply with multiple regulations. KYC is used to assess the suitability of customers when it comes to anti-money laundering regulations, any type of financial fraud and determining whether they are potentially risky for the brokerage.In particular, KYC guidelines in financial services mandate that individuals make a cohesive effort to verify the identity, suitability, and risks Know Your Customer (KYC) is the process via which the broker is verifying the true identity of its clients in order to comply with multiple regulations. KYC is used to assess the suitability of customers when it comes to anti-money laundering regulations, any type of financial fraud and determining whether they are potentially risky for the brokerage.In particular, KYC guidelines in financial services mandate that individuals make a cohesive effort to verify the identity, suitability, and risks Read this Term) and anti-money laundering (AML Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Read this Term) procedures was cited by both exchanges. As a result, South Korean exchanges may delist products following these warnings.