The run from emergency martial law inspired a historic high of $34.2 billion in cryptocurrency trading volume from South Korea over a single day. The flurry of activity, much lent by Upbit, one of South Korea’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, was a sign that digital assets were becoming an increasingly important part of the country’s financial fabric as it undergoes tumultuous political change.
Data from CoinMarketCap shows Upbit accounting for $27.25 billion of the total volume, second most to Bithumb, which handled $34.52 billion. Besides these, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax registered heavy volumes.
The daily trade volume was $18 billion a day earlier, and it almost doubled to nearly double yesterday, a trading volume that surpassed the daily turnover of South Korea’s stock market. Digital Asset, a local crypto outlet, confirmed the single-day trading volume to be the highest of the year.
South Korea Faces Panic As Martial Law Shakes Crypto Markets
It came as President Yoon declared martial law overnight, hours after he said he was at risk from democracy-threatening ‘anti-state’ elements linked to the opposition left-wing party.
The six-hour emergency measures scared South Korean investors into panic. Cryptocurrency prices began to fall sharply, and traders rushed to offload assets. At its lowest, Bitcoin on Upbit crashed to 88 million won ($62,182), while other cryptocurrencies were no different.
It overwhelmed exchanges, driving them into service outages as trading volumes soared.
Lawmakers unanimously overturned the order declaring martial law early Wednesday. They held an emergency session. President Yoon rescinded the order shortly after, but the political fallout remains.
President Yoon and the Defence and Interior ministers are now bearing the brunt of South Korea’s main opposition party’s decision to file treason charges against the head of state. Impeachment calls are gaining steam.
🇰🇷🚨‼️ SUMMARY OF THE CRAZY EVENTS IN SOUTH KOREA:
1) The president of South Korea expected an impeachment from the opposition.
2) To prevent that, he declared martial law banning all political activity!
3) The Korean army came and closed off the parliament to prevent MPs to… pic.twitter.com/Ez5UcQutFR
— Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) December 3, 2024
On platforms such as Polymarket, President Yoon’s political future has been tossed onto the political bet slips, and speculation has skyrocketed on odds of his early exit, which jumped to 78 percent before stabilizing at 47 percent. He is due to remain in office until May 2027.
Crypto as a Financial Refuge
The case also highlights South Koreans’ increased use of cryptocurrency as an alternative financial vehicle. According to a recent survey, South Koreans aged 20–39 turned to crypto and stocks as tools for retirement savings, and more than 75 percent distrusted the national pension system.
Yonhap News analyzed asset disclosures and found that 7 percent of South Korean political candidates hold cryptocurrency.
During this crypto boom, the South Korean government is cracking down on exchange token listings, including rules to censor token theft.
Meanwhile, the government has pushed back a 20 percent tax on cryptocurrency gains until 2025. The tax, slated for 2021, was repeatedly delayed by political negotiations and public opposition.
The South Korean cryptocurrency market is still showing both its resilience and volatility, with the record-breaking trading day. Political chaos bred panic and uncertainty, but it also signaled digital assets’ growing relevance to the country’s economy.
However, regardless of how cryptocurrency contracts come to be regulated, as South Korea continues to face political and financial challenges, cryptocurrency’s role as a place of refuge and a speculative asset grows, preparing the country for an even more fluid regulatory and investment landscape.
