Bithumb Targets 2028 IPO Amid South Korea's Tightening Crypto Regulations
Bithumb, South Korea's second-largest crypto exchange, has announced plans to go public in 2028. The exchange released an official three-stage roadmap on August 3, 2026, outlining its plan to complete advanced internal controls by the end of 2026, file for a preliminary listing review in 2027, and achieve a full public offering in 2028.
The move comes after a tumultuous year for Bithumb. In February 2026, a staff error led to the loss of $43 billion worth of Bitcoin due to a promotional campaign mishap, exposing critical gaps in the exchange's internal verification systems. The mistake temporarily crashed the local BTC price by around 17%.
Bithumb has since recovered 99.7% of the phantom balances and covered a 1,788 BTC shortfall from corporate reserves. Additionally, the exchange established a ₩100 billion ($68 million) Customer Protection Fund for affected traders. South Korean regulators responded with fines and a partial business suspension, later stayed by court order.
The fallout accelerated Bithumb's push to rebuild credibility from the ground up, with Samjong KPMG brought on as an advisory partner through 2027. The exchange's IPO roadmap includes six pillars: transitioning from K-GAAP to K-IFRS and strengthening risk management to global listed-company standards.
The aim is to spin off Bithumb Asset to remove conflicts of interest, diversify revenue streams, improve public disclosures of financials and virtual-asset holdings, and collaborate with top securities firms, law firms, and auditors. The timing of this IPO push is notable, as South Korea's Deputy Prime Minister Koo Yun-cheol confirmed that a 22% crypto gains tax will take effect on January 1, 2027.
The pressure makes the IPO preparation a dual exercise: demonstrate governance strength to public markets while navigating the most significant domestic regulatory shift in years. Bithumb stated that the 2028 timeline remains flexible and may shift based on market conditions and the speed of regulatory reviews.