$110B in crypto leaves South Korea in 2025 as trading rules lag global markets
Over $110 billion in cryptocurrency left South Korea in 2025 due to strict trading regulations and limited investment opportunities.Summary
A joint report by Coingecko and Tiger Research revealed that South Korean investors moved more than $110 billion (160 trillion won) from local crypto exchanges to foreign platforms in 2025. This outflow is attributed to regulatory restrictions within the country, which lags behind global markets in its crypto framework. The delayed implementation of the Digital Asset Basic Act (DABA), due to disagreements over stablecoin regulation, and the limitations of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which doesn't address leverage or derivatives trading, have created a gap in the market. Consequently, Korean investors are increasingly turning to offshore platforms like Binance and Bybit for more complex trading products, as domestic exchanges are restricted to spot trading. Despite a growing investor base of 10 million and significant revenue for exchanges like Upbit and Bithumb, the crypto market in South Korea is experiencing stagnation due to these limitations.
(Source：CoinDesk)