South Korea's Stablecoin Exodus Continues Unabated Amid Regulatory Pressures

The stablecoin market in South Korea has experienced significant outflows over the past 18 months. According to data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), the top five won-based exchanges - Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax - sent a net total of 560.3 billion won ($367 million) in stablecoins to overseas venues in June.

This trend is not limited to June; it represents an ongoing issue that has persisted since January 2025. The data shows that South Korean traders are routing their stablecoins offshore due to regulatory restrictions on product offerings within the domestic market.

The Specific Financial Information Act, which governs the operations of these exchanges, limits access to high-leverage derivatives, DeFi pools, liquid staking, and most RWA protocols. This has led to a significant incentive for investors to seek out overseas platforms that offer more comprehensive product suites.

One notable example is Coinone, which recently introduced zero-fee trading for Circle's USDC in October 2025. As a result, Coinone recorded the highest average daily stablecoin trading volume in June at 84.58 billion won, capturing a 34.8 percent share of the market.