Quick Takeaways
- Just 10% of users control over 90% of crypto trading on major Korean exchanges
- Bithumb leads with nearly 98% of trades coming from whale investors
- The famous “listing effect” might be driven by whales, not retail traders
Whales Are Running the Show in South Korea’s Crypto Trading
If you imagine South Korea’s crypto scene packed with millions of everyday traders all buying and selling enthusiastically, think again.
New data shows a much different picture. A tiny group of big players called whales actually dominate crypto trading here.
According to a report by South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), these whales, who make up just the top 10% of users, handle more than 90% of total trading volume on the biggest exchanges.
And on Bithumb, the country’s second-largest platform, whales accounted for nearly 98% of trades in early 2025. That means the other 90% of users combined barely make a dent.
Here’s how whale dominance breaks down on South Korea’s top exchanges:
| Exchange | Whale Trading Share |
| Bithumb | 97.97% |
| Gopax | 97.95% |
| Coinone | 97.54% |
| Korbit | 97.52% |
| Upbit | 89.36% |
So, while it looks like the market is full of enthusiastic retail traders, the truth is that whales quietly pull most of the strings.
Big Coins, Bigger Whales: Crypto Trading Gets More Concentrated
What’s even more interesting is that crypto trading gets even more concentrated with bigger coins.
Between January 2023 and June 2025, whale investors controlled over 83% of trading in smaller market-cap tokens on Bithumb.
On Upbit, which generally has more retail users, whales still made up nearly 67% of those trades.
This data really shakes up the idea of the famous “listing effect” when a new coin listed on a Korean exchange suddenly shoots up in price.
Many believed this was retail traders rushing in. However, the numbers suggest whales are the ones driving these price jumps, probably by trading large volumes early and setting the pace.
This means retail traders might be chasing after moves started by whales, rather than leading the charge themselves.
A Changing Crypto Trading Landscape: Institutions Are Coming
Right now, South Korea’s crypto trading mostly involves spot trading, with few institutions involved and mostly retail users watching from the sidelines.
However, the government is about to shake things up. Starting later this year, up to 3,500 institutional investors will get special permission to trade on Korean exchanges.
These aren’t casual traders; they’re registered pros who could change how the market works.
This could have two possible outcomes:
- First, more institutional money might bring stability and professionalism to the market.
- Second, if institutions trade like whales with huge volume, then the concentration of power might actually increase.
Either way, this will almost certainly impact the famous “listing effect” too. Projects hoping to get Korean investors excited might find they need to impress institutions more than retail traders from now on.
