XRP Dominates Korean Crypto Trading as Investors Favor Altcoins Over Bitcoin

South Korea has emerged as the world’s most active crypto market, with traders increasingly shifting focus from Bitcoin to altcoins.

Data shared by analyst Cyclop shows that XRP has taken a commanding lead, representing nearly 29% of trading volume on Upbit, the country’s largest exchange.

In contrast, Bitcoin’s share on Upbit lags behind, highlighting Korea’s unique trading appetite. Other notable pairs include ARK/KRW at 7.5%, USDT/KRW at 6.5%, and BTC/KRW at just 4.6%. This heavy tilt toward altcoins underscores how Korean traders are “aping” into emerging tokens, often driving rapid surges across multiple assets.

The trend diverges from global platforms such as Binance, where Bitcoin and Ethereum dominate volumes. On Binance, BTC/USD and BTC/USDT together make up over 24%, with Ethereum pairs and stablecoin trading also taking significant shares. XRP, meanwhile, accounts for less than 4% of Binance volume, a sharp contrast to its dominance in Korea.

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Cyclop noted that Clearpool’s expansion into the Korean market with PayFi aligns perfectly with this demand shift, given the country’s appetite for stablecoins and yield opportunities. With XRP acting as a beta play for new projects, South Korea’s trading behavior is increasingly shaping the altcoin landscape.