South Korean investors cut their crypto holdings by more than half over the past year as capital moved toward the stock market.
Summary
- South Korean crypto holdings dropped from $83.3 billion to $41.4 billion within a year.
- Trading volume on five major exchanges fell sharply as investors moved toward equities.
- New AML checks and a 2027 crypto tax may add pressure on local exchanges.
Bank of Korea data submitted to Rep. Cha Gyu-geun showed holdings fell from 121.8 trillion won, or $83.3 billion, at the end of January 2025 to 60.6 trillion won, or $41.4 billion, by the end of February 2026.
Daily trading volume also dropped across Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone, and Gopax. The figure fell to about $3 billion in February from $11.6 billion in December 2024, showing lower activity among retail traders.
Investors move toward stocks
The decline came as Korean investors turned toward equities during a strong stock market run. Lower crypto prices also reduced the value of assets held on local exchanges.
Won deposits at exchanges also fell. The balance dropped from 10.7 trillion won at the end of 2024 to 7.8 trillion won, pointing to weaker cash demand for crypto trading.
Moreover, stablecoins moved differently from the broader crypto market. Holdings rose from $60 million in July 2024 to $597 million in December, before falling back to $41 million in February.
As previously reported, stablecoins made up nearly half of South Korea’s crypto outflows in Q1 2025, as users moved funds to overseas exchanges. That trend shows why regulators are watching cross-border crypto flows closely.
Rules add pressure on exchanges
South Korea is also preparing tougher AML rules. Transactions above 10 million won involving overseas exchanges or private wallets could be flagged as suspicious from August.
Crypto.news also reported that Samsung SDS will build the Korea Securities Depository’s token securities platform before South Korea’s new tokenized securities framework takes effect in February 2027. That shows the country is tightening crypto oversight while building regulated blockchain market infrastructure.