Summary
- It was announced that the volume of stablecoins traded on the five major domestic cryptocurrency exchanges in the first quarter of this year reached ₩56,953,700,000,000.
- Tether accounted for 83% of the total stablecoin trading volume, and trading activity has revived recently due to the United States’ friendly policy stance.
- The Bank of Korea expressed reluctance to permit KRW-denominated stablecoin issuance in the non-banking sector.
Tether (USDT) accounts for 83% of trading volume
It was found that the volume of dollar stablecoins traded domestically in the first quarter of this year reached ₩57 trillion. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a 1-to-1 value with assets such as the dollar.
According to data submitted to Cha Gyu-geun of the Homeland Innovation Party by the Bank of Korea on the 2nd, the total trading volume of the three dollar-denominated stablecoins—Tether, USD Coin, and USD Sky—on Korea's five major cryptocurrency exchanges (Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone, and GOPAX) was ₩56,953,700,000,000 in the first quarter. Tether (₩47,331,100,000,000) was traded the most.
Stablecoin trading surged rapidly around November last year, when then-U.S. President Donald Trump, who advocated the fostering of the virtual asset industry, was elected. It increased from ₩9,431,800,000,000 in October to ₩19,145,100,000,000 in November, and jumped to ₩31,713,300,000,000 in December. However, as President Trump focused on the tariff war, investment sentiment for cryptocurrencies waned, leading to reduced trading in the first quarter of this year.
However, in the second quarter, stablecoin trading has been revitalized due to the U.S. government's friendly policies. This is because on the 19th of last month, the U.S. Senate passed the Stablecoin Act, requiring stablecoin issuers to hold 100% reserves in U.S. dollars and short-term Treasury securities.
The Bank of Korea expressed reluctance to allow the issuance of KRW stablecoins in the non-banking sector. On this day, Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-yong said, "We need to comprehensively consider whether to allow stablecoin issuance denominated in KRW in non-banking sectors," and added, "Before allowing issuance to non-bank companies, we must consider the possibility of circumventing capital controls."
Reporter Kim Jin-sung jskim1028@hankyung.com
Korea Economic Daily
hankyung@bloomingbit.ioThe Korea Economic Daily Global is a digital media where latest news on Korean companies, industries, and financial markets.
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