The South Korean virtual asset market welcomes a surge in issuance, with volume skyrocketing

In July, the South Korean virtual asset market experienced a wave of "volume and price rising" explosive issuance. As of 8 PM on July 24, the 24-hour trading volume of South Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange surpassed $10.2 billion, with an increase of 94.5%; the second-ranked exchange also saw a surge, with a 24-hour trading volume exceeding $3.2 billion and an increase of 61.5%.

Before this wave of frenzy, the underlying liquidity in the market had quietly accumulated. Data shows that from July 13 to 19, the stablecoin trading volume of the five major cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea reached 2.226 trillion KRW (approximately 1.62 billion USD).

The trading enthusiasm of South Korean investors began to emerge on July 11. On that day, the price of XRP tokens rose from $2.60 to $3.00 within a few hours, with a total net buying pressure of 45 million XRP in the spot market, 70% of which came from the largest exchange in South Korea. This surge was almost entirely driven by South Korean buying.

XRP is one of the favorite virtual assets among Korean investors, with about 15% of the global trading volume coming from the country. On July 18, XRP broke through the $3.6 mark, surpassing the historical high set on January 16. As of July 24, the price of XRP is approximately $3.16, with a 24-hour trading volume on the largest exchange in Korea reaching $2.28 billion, firmly establishing it as the most popular asset on the platform.

On July 23, the "AI-native" full-stack blockchain platform Sahara AI's token sparked a second wave of excitement. The single-day maximum increase reached 86%, ranking third in terms of transaction volume in the spot market of a certain exchange, accounting for 8.76% of the total platform volume. As of 8 PM on July 24, its trading volume in the past 24 hours reached $2.3 billion, with 43.56% of spot trading coming from South Korea's largest exchange, and another 4.33% from the second largest exchange.

After the Sahara AI token broke through $0.16 and reached a historic high, the Newton Protocol token began to rise. As of 8 PM on July 24, this token had increased by over 70% in 24 hours, with a volume of $1.78 billion, of which 57.07% came from the largest exchange in South Korea and 4.99% from the second largest exchange, fully reflecting the concentration and explosive power of South Korean crypto retail investors.

In addition, Korean investors have also driven the rise of several tokens including Hyperlane, Babylon, HUMA, LISTA, and MERL.

Against the backdrop of Bitcoin reaching historical highs, ETH making a comeback, and an increasingly optimized regulatory environment, the listing pace of South Korean exchanges has also noticeably accelerated. As of July 21, the five major virtual asset exchanges in South Korea have listed a total of 229 types of KRW virtual assets, accounting for 85.44% of last year's total. The number of listings on the two major exchanges this year has already surpassed the total for the entire last year, and it is expected that this year may see the highest number of cryptocurrencies listed in nearly five years.

The "coin listing frenzy" not only provides more options for speculative funds but also leads to continuous changes in market hotspots. However, the intense influx of funds and rapid rotation are accompanied by significant volatility risks: some popular tokens have experienced short-term pullbacks of over 10%, with concentrated contract liquidations. If liquidity suddenly reverses, prices will face severe fluctuations.

Analysts warn that as the altcoin craze finally arrives, the behavior of South Korean investors will undergo significant changes. Against the backdrop of a surge in new capital inflows, South Korean investors' enthusiasm for altcoins often surpasses that of overseas markets. In this environment, the FOMO mentality plays a key role and could pose great risks to investors.