One in three Koreans now own crypto, Bank of Korea says

A new report shows that more than 30% of the South Korean population holds crypto, with investors now holding over 100 trillion won in assets.

South Korea‘s crypto market is rapidly booming as the number of investors reached 15.59 million by the end of November, Yonhap News Agency reports, citing data shared by Democratic Party lawmaker Lim Kwang-hyun.

The latest figure shows an increase of 610,000 investors from the previous month, likely fueled by optimism following Donald Trump’s presidential election victory.

According to the data, the total value of crypto held by South Korean investors reached a record 102.6 trillion won (around $78 billion) in November, up from 58 trillion won in July. While the data doesn’t specify which cryptocurrencies are most popular among investors, the average amount held by each investor surged to 6.58 million won, a huge increase from previous months.

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In terms of trading activity, the daily trading volume on South Korea’s top five crypto exchanges — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and GoPax — reached nearly 15 trillion won in November, almost matching the daily trading volume of the country’s stock markets.

However, some warn that the market is growing too fast. Lawmaker Lim Kwang-hyun has asked the government to make sure the crypto market remains stable and to protect consumers from possible risks. However, it is still unclear what steps the authorities will take in the near future.

Read more: Chief of South Korean Stock Exchange says crypto should be institutionalized quickly

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