South Korean Finance Regulators to Investigate Upbit’s Monopoly: Report

South Korean financial regulators have announced plans to investigate Upbit, the country’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, over concerns of market monopolization. Chairman Kim Byung-hwan of the Financial Services Commission stated that they will be looking into the issue after legislator Lee Kang-il raised concerns about Upbit’s dominance and its close partnership with K-Bank. It was revealed that Upbit holds a significant portion of K-Bank’s deposits, which is set to undergo an initial public offering (IPO) soon. Lee also questioned the bank’s profitability in offering a high interest rate for Upbit customer deposits. Chairman Kim assured that the IPO review of K-Bank has been thoroughly examined, and the situation with Upbit will be comprehensively reviewed by the virtual asset committee. Upbit, established in 2017, is a major player in the South Korean cryptocurrency market, with a daily trading volume of $1.2 billion. The exchange has been dominating the market, with 80% of South Korea’s crypto trading volume. However, this investigation suggests that regulators are keen on addressing any potential issues of monopoly in the industry.