Korea's Crypto Market Shrinks 33% in H1 2026, Trading Volume Plummets 44%

The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) and the Financial Supervisory Service have released a half-yearly survey on South Korea's crypto market. The results show that the market is getting older, quieter, and smaller. Users in their 40s now make up the largest age group, surpassing those in their 30s. The market capitalization of crypto listed on domestic exchanges fell by 33% to 58.9 trillion won, making it 28.3 trillion won smaller than in the second half of 2025.

The average daily trading volume dropped by 44% to 3.1 trillion won. Won deposits held on exchanges decreased by 35% to 5.2 trillion won. The maximum drawdown for crypto assets on domestic exchanges reached 69%, higher than the KOSPI's 55.1% and KOSDAQ's 31.8% over the same period.

The survey covered 26 registered virtual asset service providers. Exchanges earned less as trading volume fell, with sales across domestic exchanges dropping by 41%. Combined operating profit declined by 78% to 81.6 billion won. Users holding under 1 million won rose 4% to 8.63 million.

The KoFIU warned about risks in smaller listings, noting that 93 tokens traded on only one exchange had market caps of 100 million won or less. These tokens are considered to carry liquidity risk and extreme price volatility.