Why South Korean Bitcoin Price Is $1,000 Over Global Price

While interest in Bitcoin is exploding all around the globe, the jump seems to have been particularly strong in South Korea. Bitcoin has become incredibly popular in the country, with trade volumes going through the roof in recent months. This has prompted the three largest exchanges in South Korea to see nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in trade volume daily. More importantly for traders around the world, though, is the fact that along with the major trade volume has also come a significant Bitcoin price bump in those exchanges.

The top three Bitcoin exchanges in South Korea are Bithumb, Korbit, and Coinone. These exchanges have seen their average daily trade volume climb significantly in the past several months. Together, these trading platforms are now processing about USD $200 million  of trades between South Korean wan and Bitcoin each day.

This goes alongside a South Korean surge in startups that are dedicated to Bitcoin in other ways, too. With major support from the South Korean government, the country's economy has been shifting more toward technology. Now, South Korean startups focusing on Bitcoin remittance and other types of financial tech on the rise.

The intense demand for Bitcoin in South Korea has prompted the top three exchanges to see price levels that vastly outpace those around the globe. Bitcoin in general has seen a price boost in the past few weeks that is unprecedented in the world of digital currency. Just days ago the currency was trading for more than $2,200 per coin. And yet, South Korea has price averages reaching a range of $3,500-$3,800 per coin, according to Bitcoin.com. This massive discrepancy in price between Korean exchanges and those in other parts of the world has prompted some investors to capitalize on the arbitrage opportunities.

South Korea is quickly becoming a leader in digital currencies. The country sports three Bitcoin ATMs and is a hub for the currency's remittance market. The government has recently lowered the equity capital required for companies focusing on Bitcoin remittances, with the changes set to take place on June 18. Besides that, a team of researchers from the central bank of South Korea released a recent report suggesting that digital currencies can "coexist with fiat." The team explained that "the recent emergence of digital currency opens up a new type of dual currency regime in which the digital currency, which has no intrinsic value, and a government-issued fiat currency coexist."

All of this seems to suggest that South Korea is a country to watch very closely for Bitcoin developments in the years to come, both for traders and for those generally interested in fintech more broadly.