South Koreans Embrace Cryptocurrency as Trump Fuels Investment Surge

The number of South Koreans investing in cryptocurrencies has recently surpassed 15 million, which accounts for about 30% of the country’s population. This surge reflects their aspirations for US President-elect Donald J. Trump’s crypto push.

According to data from the Bank of Korea, Korea’s retail cryptocurrency investors reached 15.59 million as of the end of November, up 610,000 from the previous month. This figure represents the total number of crypto investors with accounts in the country's top five exchanges: Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax.

After a steady increase of about 100,000 investors each month since July, the number surged last month due to crypto prices soaring after Trump’s election, who has promised to foster the cryptocurrency market.

Trump's pledge to impose higher taxes on imports has led investors to turn away from traditional stock markets, seeking better returns in the volatile crypto market. The leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, saw its price rise from 100 million won to 135.8 million won (approximately $92,740) per unit by the end of November.

The value of Korean digital currency investors’ holdings ballooned to 102.6 trillion won from 58 trillion won just a month earlier, having remained below 60 trillion won from July to October.

Higher Trading Volume Than Kospi and Kosdaq

The daily average trading volume on Korean crypto exchanges skyrocketed to 14.9 trillion won, nearly matching the total daily trading volume of the Kospi and Kosdaq stock exchanges. Prior to this, it had hovered around 3 trillion won from July to October.

With a bullish outlook on the digital currency market, deposit funds in major Korean crypto exchanges nearly doubled to 8.8 trillion won at the end of November, from the end of October. Korea is recognized as one of the world’s top five crypto markets even before this recent excitement.

Koreans' love for high-risk, high-return investments has led to a deep integration of crypto tokens into the financial landscape. Upbit, Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, was ranked fourth among the world’s most trustworthy exchanges by Forbes earlier this year. However, regulatory uncertainties and negative public perceptions of digital coins continue to pose challenges.