South Korean crypto traders increase 70% in three years

The number of cryptocurrency traders in South Korea has increased by approximately 70% over the past three years, Asia Business Daily reported on Jan. 28. The report cited data submitted by South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service to Lee Heon-seung, a lawmaker with the People Power Party. According to the data, the number of trading participants on the country's five largest exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Streami, and Korbit—grew steadily from 5.82 million in 2023 to 8.91 million in 2024 and 9.91 million in 2025. The figure for last year marks a 70.3% increase from 2023. Meanwhile, combined trading volume on these exchanges surged from 1,122.22 trillion won ($801.6 billion) in 2023 to 2,411.32 trillion won ($1.8 trillion) in 2024, before entering a correction phase and settling at 2,139.89 trillion won ($1.6 trillion) last year.