South Korean crypto holdings halve in a year as investors turn to stock market. The figure fell from 121.8 trillion won at the end of January 2025 to 60.6 trillion won by February 2026. That is $83.3 billion down to $41.4 billion at current exchange rates.
Daily trading volumes across the five major exchanges collapsed alongside. Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone and Gopax handled $11.6 billion in December 2024. By February that had dropped to $3 billion. The figures come from data the Bank of Korea submitted to Rep. Cha Gyu-geun of the Rebuilding Korea Party, according to wire reports.
Won deposits held at exchanges, a rough proxy for investor cash on the sidelines, fell from 10.7 trillion won at the end of 2024 to 7.8 trillion won by February.
The rotation
The drop in South Korean crypto holdings tracks two factors. Crypto prices fell. Capital moved into equities. The Korean equity market had a strong quarter whilst digital asset prices chopped around.
Stablecoins were the exception. Holdings climbed from $60 million in July 2024 to a peak of $597 million in December before pulling back to $41 million in February. The percentage decline was smaller than the broader crypto market selloff.
| Metric | End-2024 | February 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total holdings | 121.8 trillion won | 60.6 trillion won | -50% |
| Daily volume | $11.6bn (Dec) | $3bn | -74% |
| Won deposits | 10.7 trillion won | 7.8 trillion won | -27% |
| Stablecoin holdings | $597m (Dec peak) | $41m | -93% |
New AML rules in August
South Korean crypto holdings are shrinking ahead of tighter regulatory oversight. Financial authorities plan to implement revised AML rules in August. Any crypto transaction above 10 million won involving overseas exchanges or private wallets would be automatically flagged as suspicious under the new framework.
Industry body DAXA has pushed back. The group argues the rule is disproportionate and risks driving users offshore to platforms like Binance. DAXA estimates the proposal could increase suspicious transaction reports from the country’s five largest exchanges by 85 times. Last year those exchanges filed roughly 63,000 cases. Under the new rule that could rise to over 5.4 million, making compliance operationally difficult.
The 22% tax arrives in 2027
Debate over South Korea’s planned 22% crypto tax is intensifying. The Finance Ministry confirmed for the first time on Thursday that the tax on crypto gains will take effect as scheduled on January 1, 2027.
The combination of falling prices, tighter AML oversight, and an approaching tax deadline has put pressure on South Korean crypto holdings. The equity market offered a cleaner trade over the past year. That rotation is visible in the exchange deposit figures as much as the headline holdings number.
Blockchain infrastructure build continues
Separately, Samsung SDS has won a contract to build and operate a blockchain-based securities platform for the Korea Securities Depository. The project is expected to be completed by February 2027.
The move comes ahead of South Korea’s broader push to build market infrastructure for tokenised assets. A new legal framework for digital securities takes effect in early 2027. The equity infrastructure is being built whilst the retail crypto market contracts.
Next catalyst for South Korean crypto holdings: the August AML implementation. If the 10 million won threshold sticks, offshore flow accelerates.
This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Readers should not act on any information contained here without first consulting an authorised financial adviser. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
