Upbit Trading Volume Jumps 273% as South Korean Investors Return to Crypto

Upbit, South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, saw its 24-hour trading volume surge 273% to roughly $1.84 billion — its largest daily figure since mid-March — as South Korean investors began returning to digital assets, according to CoinGecko data.

XRP leads the rebound XRP was the most-traded cryptocurrency on Upbit over the past 24 hours, with $418.9 million worth of trades, followed by bitcoin, USDT and ether.

Bithumb, the country’s second-largest exchange, also posted a 132.9% rise in volume to $934.9 million, with XRP again the most-traded token.

From stocks back to crypto The rebound follows a prolonged bear market that began in early 2026 and pushed South Korean capital toward the KOSPI stock index, which climbed to record highs on an AI memory boom at Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.