Coin ants are moving abroad… Binance trading volume is 5.5 times that of all Korean exchanges.

The trading volume of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has been revealed to be approximately 5.5 times greater than that of all domestic exchanges. This is due to the continued exodus of retail investors overseas, while foreign trading is blocked in Korea. Market insiders predict that a restructuring of the industry is inevitable, given major events like Binance's acquisition of GOPAX and the merger of Dunamu and Naver Financial, as well as the widening gap in size between domestic and international exchanges.

According to data from blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant on the 11th, the combined monthly trading volume of domestic exchanges last month reached $45.2 billion (approximately 65 trillion won). During the same period, Binance's trading volume reached $289.3 billion, 6.4 times the combined volume of all domestic exchanges. While trading volume decreased significantly last month due to the sharp drop in cryptocurrency prices, overall, it is on the rise: 4.67 times in July, 5.44 times in August, and 5.11 times in September. Based on the average over the past three months, Binance's trading volume is approximately 5.45 times higher than that of domestic exchanges.

Officials say this is due to the outflow of funds to overseas exchanges and domestic regulations. According to financial authorities, the amount of virtual currency flowing out of domestic exchanges reached 101.6 trillion won in the first half of this year alone. This represents a 242% increase compared to the first half of 2023, when the authorities first released related statistics.

Restrictions in the domestic market also play a role. In Korea, cryptocurrency derivatives trading is blocked, and the separation of gold and silver prices and unclear regulatory scope make it difficult to enter new businesses. Conversely, overseas exchanges are evolving into comprehensive financial infrastructure companies, broadly expanding their service areas to include not only derivatives but also stablecoins and AI agent payments.

Many predict that the continued entry of foreign exchanges into Korea will further weaken the position of domestic exchanges. Major Chinese exchanges, including OKEx, HTX, and BTCC, have all recently begun hiring local talent in Korea. All three previously operated exchanges in Korea, but withdrew after the revised Specific Financial Information Act took effect in 2021. The industry interprets this recruitment as a signal of their return after four years.

In particular, OKEx, a top 5 global exchange, has been seeking a "Senior Operations Manager" since last week to work closely with its re-entry into the Korean market. The Senior Operations Manager will be responsible for developing a go-to-market (GTM) strategy for entering the Korean market and analyzing market trends and competitors. There are also rumors that Bybit, a second-largest global exchange, is pursuing an acquisition of Korbit, but Korbit has officially denied the claims, stating, "We have not notified or discussed any share sale." An industry insider predicted, "Given the entry of major overseas exchanges into the Korean market and the merger between Dunamu and Naver, a restructuring of the domestic market is inevitable."

Reporter Kim Jeong-woo