Crypto News – In the first quarter of 2024, the South Korean won overtook cryptocurrencies as the most traded fiat currency worldwide.
The Most Traded Fiat Korean Won, According to Kaiko Reports
According to a research report published by Kaiko on April 15, the won accounted for approximately $456 billion in trading volume on centralized crypto exchanges, surpassing $455 billion in U.S. dollar volume. The “fee war” between Korean cryptocurrency exchanges is the reason given by the research firm for the won’s increasing supremacy.
The improving macroeconomic environment and fierce competition among Korean exchanges has boosted trade volume on Korean markets which hit its highest level in more than two years in early March. In Q1 2024, the South Korean Won surpassed the US Dollar in terms of cumulative trade volume.
The report
Since 2021, Upbit, the top cryptocurrency exchange in the region, has controlled more than 82% of the South Korean cryptocurrency market. But rival exchanges are now more competitive than ever, as evidenced by the current bull run, which led to the late 2023 zero-fee campaigns on the Bithumb and Korbit exchanges.
Bithumb’s Revenue Decline May Be Due To Its Policy
Bithumb’s market share tripled in the months following the implementation of zero-fee policy trading in October 2023, while Korbit’s market share stayed below 1%. Yet, Kaiko claims that Bithumb suffered a significant loss in revenue as a result of the aggressive zero-fee strategy.
Despite its aggressive zero-fee strategy and the resulting surge in trade volume, Bithumb’s annual revenue dropped by 60% in 2023. The significant decline in revenue may have prompted the exchange to discontinue its zero-fee campaign on Feb. 5, just five months after its launch.
Kaiko
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