PiCK
Korbit refutes Bybit acquisition rumors, calling them "baseless"
Summary
- A Korbit official said the Bybit acquisition rumors were baseless.
- Korbit said the meeting with Bybit was merely for sharing industry trends.
- It said market interest in the possibility of foreign cryptocurrency exchanges' entry into Korea has increased since financial authorities allowed the Gopax acquisition.
Domestic cryptocurrency exchange Korbit distanced itself from the Bybit acquisition rumors.
A Korbit official told BloomingBit on the 10th, "The Bybit acquisition rumors are baseless," and said, "(With Bybit) there has been no notification or consultation carried out regarding any share sale." Korbit said, "(Korbit) regularly exchanges with various cryptocurrency operators around the world and shares industry trends," adding, "The meeting with Bybit was conducted as part of such exchanges and was not a meeting of any special nature."
On the same day, one media outlet reported that Bybit had begun acquisition efforts, including recently meeting with Korbit management. Following that report, analyses emerged that, after financial authorities recently allowed Binance's acquisition of Gopax, foreign cryptocurrency firms might be stepping up their entry into the Korean market.
Binance and Bybit are the world's No. 1 and No. 2 cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume, respectively.
JOON HYOUNG LEE
gilson@bloomingbit.ioCrypto Journalist based in Seoul
