Korbit sells 15 BTC and 60 ETH as Korea exchange volumes hit 2-year low

South Korean crypto exchange Korbit sold 15 bitcoin and 60 ether from its corporate reserves to cover operating costs as trading volumes across the country's five major platforms fell to a two-year low.

"The prolonged volume downturn has made it unsustainable for smaller exchanges to operate without tapping reserves," a person familiar with Korbit's operations said, declining to be named because the matter is private.

Korbit, Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Gopax all recorded their lowest monthly trading volumes since at least mid-2024, according to CoinGecko data. Upbit, the market leader, saw weekly XRP trading volume drop 51% to 258 million tokens by mid-July from 530 million in late June, on-chain data from CryptoOnchain shows. The Kimchi premium — a price gap that historically signaled strong Korean retail demand — has largely disappeared across major tokens, with XRP on Upbit trading about 1.1% below its global fair value.

The volume collapse comes as South Korea's Supreme Court prepares to implement new civil execution rules in October 2026 that will allow judges to directly freeze debtor wallets on exchanges and block asset transfers, according to a court filing. The rules would make exchange-held crypto easier to seize than self-custodied assets, raising compliance pressure on platforms already struggling with thinning revenue.

Korbit's decision to liquidate reserves — rather than raise fresh capital or cut costs — signals the severity of the revenue shortfall at smaller Korean platforms. The exchange sold into a market where bitcoin traded at $66,504 as of 07:00 UTC Monday, up 2.96% in 24 hours, while ether changed hands at $1,941.22, up 3.72%, according to CoinGecko.

The broader crypto rally, fueled by renewed hopes for the CLARITY Act in the US, has done little to revive Korean exchange volumes. The divergence suggests local retail traders remain on the sidelines even as global prices rise, a dynamic that historically preceded deeper liquidity crunches at smaller platforms.

South Korea's five exchanges collectively handle a disproportionate share of global altcoin trading, and the sustained volume drought raises the risk of further operational strain. If volumes fail to recover, smaller exchanges may face a choice between additional reserve liquidation, cost-cutting or consolidation — none of which bode well for the market's retail-driven structure.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.