TechFlow reported that since mid-April, the Korean bitcoin "kimchi premium" has been steadily declining.
This phenomenon stems from South Korea's cryptocurrency markets being effectively closed to foreign investors. Local investors engaging in arbitrage by purchasing cryptocurrencies on foreign exchanges may face penalties. Limited domestic supply of cryptocurrencies in South Korea has historically led to widening price gaps amid surging demand.
As the bitcoin premium declines, trading volumes have also dropped across South Korea's top five cryptocurrency exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax—which dominate the local market. According to CoinGecko data, the combined trading volume of these five platforms was $2 billion over the past 24 hours, compared to nearly $18 billion reported on March 6.
