After reaching its highest point in early March, the daily trading volume at Upbit, a major cryptocurrency exchange in South Korea, dropped significantly to $3.8 billion at the start of April. Upbit had recorded its peak trading volume for the year, hitting approximately $15 billion on March 5.

The surge in daily trading volume on the crypto exchange could be attributed to Bitcoin setting a new all-time high of $69,200 on the same day. The substantial investments in newly established spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs in the U.S played a significant role in driving this rapid increase.

Price Discrepancy

On March 5 at around 3:00 pm UTC, Bitcoin achieved a new record high of 96,734,000 South Korean won (approximately $72,504) on Upbit, while it was trading below $70,000 in other global markets. This discrepancy in pricing may have contributed to the exchange's heightened daily trade volume on that day.

The term "Kimchi Premium" denotes the pricing gap between South Korea and global markets. Named after the traditional Korean fermented side dish, this premium reflects the difference in bitcoin prices on Korean exchanges compared to those on international platforms. Although the increase was temporary, by March 31, Upbit's daily trading volume had decreased to $2.6 billion.

As of April 1, Upbit's 24-hour trading volume stood at $3.8 billion, as reported by the coin statistics tracker CoinGecko. The net profit of Upbit's parent company declined by 81% in 2023. The profit of $23 million announced by Dunamu, the owner of Upbit, on November 28, is notably lower than the $123 million profit recorded during the same period in 2022.