Okay, something really weird is happening with Upbit lately. You know how they used to be super picky about listings? Taking forever to approve anything? Well, forget all that. These days, they're dropping new tokens almost every single day. It's September 2025 and I swear, every morning there's another announcement.
This isn't just Upbit going crazy though. There's actually a fascinating reason behind all this madness, and it has everything to do with Korea's bizarre crypto regulations.
The Spot-Trading-Only Problem
So here's the thing that blows most foreigners' minds when they hear it: Korean exchanges can only do spot trading. That's it. No futures, no options, no leverage, no margin trading. Nothing. Nada. Zero.
It's like... imagine if coffee shops in Korea could only sell black coffee. No lattes, no cappuccinos, no frappuccinos. Just black coffee. How would Starbucks and Coffee Bean compete? They'd probably introduce fifty different types of black coffee beans every week, right?
That's basically what's happening with crypto exchanges here.
I talked to someone working at one of these exchanges (can't say which one, obviously), and they put it perfectly: "Korea's market being limited to spot trading makes listing expansion the only competitive tool. Ironically, stricter regulations have intensified listing competition, potentially weakening investor protection."
The government tried to protect us from risky trading, but ended up creating a different kind of risk. Classic.
The Numbers Are Absolutely Insane
Get this—Upbit's delisting ratio jumped from 8% to 24% recently. They're not just randomly throwing tokens at the wall. They're listing like crazy, then kicking out the losers even faster.
Just in the first 11 days of September, Upbit listed 9 new tokens. Nine! This is the same exchange that used to spend months debating whether to list a single coin. They've already broken their monthly record and September isn't even over yet.
Meanwhile, Bithumb is playing this hilarious game. About 66% of Upbit's new listings? Already on Bithumb. But then 38% of Bithumb's new listings are just copying Upbit's picks. They're basically doing each other's homework but pretending they came up with it themselves.
What It's Like Being a Seoul Trader Now
I hang out at crypto meetups in Gangnam sometimes, and man, the vibe has completely changed.
Back in 2022, when Upbit listed something new? People would literally scream. KakaoTalk groups would blow up with rocket emojis. Everyone would panic-buy like their lives depended on it. It was insane.
Now? People barely look up from their phones. "Oh, another listing? Cool." It's become as exciting as hearing about tomorrow's weather.
Here's what a typical morning looks like for Seoul crypto traders now:
- Wake up, immediately check Upbit (before Instagram, before news, before anything)
- See like three Telegram alerts about new listings
- Maybe get slightly interested if it's a gaming token
- Otherwise, yawn and move on
You know that "상장빔" (listing beam) thing everyone used to get excited about? Where prices would shoot up like a laser beam? Still happens, but now it lasts maybe five minutes. Sometimes just seconds. I've seen coins pump 30% and dump back down before I could even open the app properly.
Even the famous kimchi premium got weird. Instead of Bitcoin just being 5-10% more expensive here, now we have like 50 different random tokens each with their own bizarre price differences. It's chaos.
Bithumb's Strategy Is Actually Pretty Smart
Here's what I find clever about Bithumb's approach. They know they can't out-conservative Upbit (impossible) or go completely wild (too risky). So they found this sweet spot.
Bithumb lists all the experimental, weird stuff first. Like that random hamster-themed coin? Bithumb. That AI project nobody heard of? Bithumb. Then Upbit watches what actually works and cherry-picks the winners.
It's like Bithumb volunteered to be the guinea pig for the whole market. Respect, honestly.
Foreign traders always ask me, "Why don't Korean exchanges just copy whatever Binance lists?"
Dude, you don't get it. Korean traders are different. We go absolutely bonkers for gaming tokens. Anything gaming-related moons instantly here. Metaverse stuff? Huge. And if it's a Korean project? Doesn't matter if it's garbage, it's going to pump. National pride is a hell of a drug.
The exchanges figured this out. They stopped trying to be wannabe-Binances and started catering to what Korean traders actually want.
When Government Rules Backfire Hilariously
This is my favorite part of the whole story because it's so ironic it hurts.
So the Financial Services Commission made all these rules to "protect" us. No leverage (so we don't get liquidated). No derivatives (too complicated for retail). Super strict listing requirements (to filter out scams).
Sounds good on paper, right?
Here's what actually happened: By removing every other way for exchanges to compete, they accidentally created a listing war. Exchanges can't offer cool new products, so they spam new tokens. They can't innovate with features, so they innovate with listing speed.
The Virtual Asset User Protection Act this year made it even crazier. More KYC requirements, faster delisting rules, stricter everything. Should make things safer, yeah?
Nope! Now exchanges list even MORE tokens because they know half will get delisted anyway. It's like buying 10 bananas because you know 5 will go bad before you eat them.
The Competition Gets Ridiculous
September 15th was peak comedy. Upbit announced Avantis listing at 2 PM. Literally 30 seconds later, Bithumb announces the same token. Then they start playing this game where they keep moving their listing times by 30 minutes, trying to go first.
It was like watching two kids fight over who gets to open their birthday present first.
At one point, Bithumb's market share hit 45.6%. Upbit was at 51.6%. That's way too close for comfort if you're Upbit. So what do they do? BAM—six new listings in three days. WLD, FLOCK, OPEN, LINEA, HOLO, PUMP. Just machine-gunning listings at the market.
Result? Upbit bounced back to 62% while Bithumb dropped to 36%. Message sent.
The Delisting Game Nobody Talks About
Here's the dark side everyone ignores: the aggressive delisting.
When Upbit kicked off NEM recently, it wasn't just cleaning up. They're ruthlessly curating now. The strategy is brutal:
- List everything to grab attention
- Watch the numbers like a hawk
- Underperforms for a few weeks? Dead. Gone. Deleted.
- Keep only the winners
This completely changed how people trade here. Nobody holds small altcoins long-term anymore. Why would you? Could get delisted next month. I know guys who used to "HODL" everything. Now they're in and out within days, sometimes hours.
The market became ADD because the exchanges forced it to be.
Mistakes Foreigners Always Make
Watching international traders try to game our market is honestly entertaining.
Mistake 1: Thinking Korean exchanges follow global patterns Bro, Upbit doesn't give a damn what Coinbase listed. They care what's trending in KakaoTalk crypto groups. Different planet entirely.
Mistake 2: Forgetting about our withdrawal maze "Oh look, arbitrage opportunity!" Good luck with that. Real-name verification, daily limits that make no sense, Korean banking hours (why do banks close at 4 PM?!), exchange-specific rules... By the time you figure it all out, the opportunity is long gone.
Mistake 3: Being too slow Korean traders on the subway at 7 AM already bought and sold the morning pump three times before Americans even had their coffee. The speed here is unreal. Blink and you missed it.
What You Should Know
If you're watching from outside Korea:
- Our listings basically preview what Asian retail will go crazy for
- Weekend pumps often start here (we trade HARD on weekends)
- When we delist something, other Asian exchanges usually follow
If you're just curious about how markets work:
- Regulations rarely do what regulators think they'll do
- Taking away options doesn't stop competition, just makes it weirder
- Local culture beats global standards every time
What Happens Next
This can't last forever. Something's gotta give.
We're already seeing exhaustion. Traders are getting numb to listings. Even the legendary "listing beam" is getting weaker—still happens, but instead of 50% pumps, we're seeing 10-15%.
There's rumors the government might finally allow some derivative products. If that happens, everything changes overnight. Exchanges could actually compete on products instead of just token spam.
But right now? This is our reality. Every morning, new tokens. Every afternoon, more tokens. It's become so normal that NOT having new listings would feel weird.
The Korean crypto exchange war rages on, shaped by regulations that achieved the complete opposite of what they intended. It's messy, it's fast, it's exhausting, and it's completely, uniquely Korean.
Weird system. But hey, somehow it works. Sort of.
Makes you wonder what they'll come up with next.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial, investment, or trading advice; always conduct your own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.