Korea Crypto Bourse to Open Singapore Ops in October

Korea Crypto Bourse to Open Singapore Ops in October

Major South Korean cryptocurrency player Dunamu, Inc. is scheduled to open its crypto exchange in Singapore next month, a report by Yonhap said.

In a statement, Dunamu, the operator of the Kakao-backed exchange Upbit, said it is launching a crypto bourse in the Asian country. Although Dunamu refused to divulge the exact launch date, the company said it would happen sometime in October.

For the launch promotion, trading fees in the Singapore dollar market will be waived on the first months for “users who complete their subscription and self-certification,” the report said.

Since the firm opened a Singaporean office in February this year, it has been preparing for operating an exchange. “As Singapore has proactively supported blockchain technology, our advancement into the nation will help us secure many chances to lead a variety of relevant projects and to have global competitiveness,” Kim Kook-hyun, head of Upbit’s Singaporean branch, said.

Alex Kim, who previously served as the head of Kakao Indonesia, will head the new bourse. “The Upbit Singapore [exchange] will be serviced in English and offer Singapore dollar trading. It will also support crypto-to-crypto pairs, including Upbit’s US partner Bittrex’s bitcoin, ethereum and tether markets,” Dunamu said.

Singapore was chosen as the first location of Dunamu’s overseas expansion because of the nation’s “the city-state’s strong support for blockchain and related technologies.” The crypto exchange operator plans to open more offices in other parts of the globe in the future.

Upbit will not be issuing its own digital currency, Lee Sir-goo, chief executive officer of Dunamu, said at the Upbit Developer Conference in Jeju Island. “We don’t want to lose out on the opportunities now…If we wait until the Korean crypto exchange environment improves, we could lag behind our global competitors,” he added.

But, moving forward, the company is looking at introducing other fiat currencies and reaching new territories in Southeast Asia.

“In the future we would like to add other fiat currencies and expand to other countries in Southeast Asia,” Lee said, emphasizing that Upbit will continue to strengthen its partnership with Bittrex as it expands globally.

At present, Upbit is the second largest crypto exchange in South Korea. As of press time, the company’s 24-hour trading volume is valued at approximately $229 million, second only to Bithumb which holds a 24-hour trading volume of $392 million.

It is also ranked the 10th biggest crypto exchange in the world, seeing around $241 million in trades over the past 24 hours as of press time.

Upbit has 271 digital currency listed on the platform. Based on Kakao’s latest Semiannual Report, Upbit posted a $100 million profit in the third quarter of this year, surpassing the bearish crypto markets worldwide.

Recently, many companies have marked their expansion in Singapore. Line, the Japanese subsidiary of Korean internet giant Naver, unveiled a crypto exchange known as Bitbox in the country. Asude from Line, Binance is presently testing a beta fiat exchange in the country, CEO Changpeng Zhao announced last week.

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