Bitcoin (BTC) Kimchi Premium Hits Three-Year Highs amid Crypto Carnage – U.Today

Bitcoin (BTC) “Kimchi Premium,” i.e., the price gap between the spot BTC price on South Korean exchanges and Binance’s BTC/USDT pair, has jumped to levels unseen since early 2022. Surprisingly, Korean buyers might have nothing to do with this, the CryptoQuant CEO explains.
Bitcoin Kimchi Premium, the difference between the largest crypto’s valuations on South Korean and international exchanges, hit three-year highs today. During periods of the most accelerated sell-offs, it jumped to an unbelievable 12%, as noticed by Ki Young Ju, CEO and founder of CryptoQuant analytics platform.
#Bitcoin Kimchi Premium is 12% right now—a three-year high. The main reason for BTC drop seems to be the strong DXY. pic.twitter.com/fjFOyUH5Pr
However, this unusual disrepancy should not be attributed to the appetites of the Korean market. As explained by Mr. Ki Young Ju, the strong position of DXY (Dollar valuation index) is to blame for the spike.
The Kimchi Premium jumped when BTC/USDT touched the local bottom at $92,000. It happened not because Koreans were buying the dip but because BTC is being converted to USD.
During this process, direct BTC swaps in Korean won (KRW) remained at their regular levels, CryptoQuant CEO explained in a thread:
Few Koreans are converting BTC into KRW. Other countries are likely seeing a similar trend.
Some commentators attributed this abnormal jump to panic-selling on oveeseas markets that did not affect Korean segment dynamics.
Coinbase Premium, i.e., the gap between the Coinbase and Binance prices of the USDT pair, also stayed positive during today’s sell-off.
As covered by U.Today previously, cryptocurrency markets experienced their worst drop in years. The net capitalization of crypto assets lost $280 billion, being 7% down in 24 hours.

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As such, Bitcoin (BTC) is the best performer in the top 25 assets, excluding stablecoins.
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Blockchain Analyst & Writer with scientific background. 6+ years in IT-analytics, 3+ years in blockchain.
Worked in independent analysis as well as in start-ups (Swap.online, Monoreto, Attic Lab etc.)
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are not investment advice; they are provided for informational purposes only. The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. Every investment and all trading involves risk, so you should always perform your own research prior to making decisions. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. We do not recommend investing money you cannot afford to lose.

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