South Korean crypto traders bet big on XRP, DOGE, and BTC as risky trades market return

Retail cryptocurrency investors in South Korea are embracing high-volatility tokens, with XRP and Dogecoin (DOGE) outpacing Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) in trading volumes over the past 24 hours. 

According to data from Upbit, South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, DOGE accounted for 10.23% of the platform’s $2.86 billion total trading volume, while XRP followed closely with 9.49%, 3% over BTC and ETH. Both tokens exceeded $250 million in volume, compared to $180 million figures for BTC and ETH.

The volume changes come against the backdrop of a bullish momentum in the South Korean crypto market that sparked a $1 billion short squeeze last week. The global crypto market cap also revisited its 3-month high of $3.4 trillion over the weekend, per Coingecko.

XRP whale activity, institutional interest boost trade numbers

Data from market intelligence firm Santiment shows that in the past month, whales have accumulated over 880 million XRP tokens. The market analysis firm asserted that more holders are reportedly growing confident in the token’s growth potential. 

XRP recently hit a seven-week high of $2.4712 after word spread around social media that global asset management giant BlackRock may be considering applying for an XRP-based exchange-traded fund (ETF). 

No confirmations have come since, but rumors were stoked following BlackRock’s undisclosed meeting with the US SEC, where the subject of XRP may have been raised.

Both XRP and DOGE have risen more than 11% in the past seven days, surpassing Bitcoin’s 10% gain. Ethereum, meanwhile, has jumped nearly 40% over the same period, its largest weekly rise since 2021. 

“We subscribe to the view that this was a classic market short-squeeze against an exceptionally one-sided market,” said Augustine Fan, head of insights at crypto options platform SignalPlus. “There’s no evidence of significant ETH ETF inflows, suggesting this was purely a native positioning event.”

At the time of this publication, XRP is changing hands at 3,405 KRW, up 3% in the last day, while DOGE has surged 8% in the same period.

South Korea’s retail momentum recalls ‘Kimchi Premium’ era

The trading behavior in South Korea is similar to previous periods of heightened retail speculation, often referred to as the “Kimchi Premium” era, where South Korean traders paid substantial premiums over global prices to chase high-risk crypto assets.

Historically, the South Korean crypto market has served as a barometer for retail investor sentiment. According to market watchers, the current rally spells the easing of geopolitical tensions between the United States and Asia.

US and Chinese trade officials announced Monday a mutual reduction in tariffs on select goods, from 145% to 30%, for the next 90 days. Traders are supposedly seeing the agreement as a positive development for global markets, including crypto.

Crypto ETFs enter South Korea’s presidential race

South Korea’s crypto market retail activity spike is also unfolding weeks ahead of a presidential election set for June 3, 2025. Former President Yoon Suk-yeol, a conservative leader, was impeached last month following his declaration of martial law during nationwide protests in December. 

Kim Moon-soo, the candidate from the ruling People Power Party, announced on Monday that he will vouch for the introduction of spot crypto ETFs in South Korea. His proposal includes institutionalizing digital currencies through legal reforms that “improve middle-class wealth and investor protections.”

According to local opinion polls, Democratic Party candidate Lee is leading the race. A Flower Research poll gave Lee a 54% approval rating, with Kim trailing at 20.6%. Reform Party candidate Lee Jun-seok garnered just 6.9%.

Another poll by Realmeter placed Lee’s odds of winning at 52%, Kim at 31%, and Lee Jun-seok at 6.3%.

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