Coinone and Digital X (formerly Upbit) have boosted their market shares within two months of making virtual asset trading fees free. By absorbing investment demand that has become sensitive to trading costs amid sluggish market conditions, the two exchanges are expanding their foothold in the duopoly structure dominated by Upbit and Bithumb.
According to CoinGecko’s daily statistics, during last week (the 19th to the 25th), Coinone recorded a market share of 4.6% to 12.9%, while Digital X recorded 1.4% to 3.3% in virtual asset trading among five domestic exchanges. These figures were measured based on each exchange’s 24-hour trading volume at 9 a.m. daily. On the 20th, the two exchanges combined their market share to reach a total of 16.1%, pushing the leading Upbit’s market share (48.2%) below the 50th% mark.
This marked a significant increase compared to the weekly market shares immediately before the fee waiver (August 17 to 23), which were 1.0% to 3.0% for Coinone and 0.2% to 0.7% for Digital X. Digital X lowered its trading fees on all assets in the won market to 0% at 9 a.m. on the 24th of the same month, while Coinone did so at 11 a.m. on the 26th.
The initial market response was modest. The average daily market share recorded through the end of August remained in the 3rd% range for Coinone and the 0th% range for Digital X. However, user numbers gradually increased after mid-September. Coinone maintained a market share of 5% to 8% in mid-September before recording 10.3% on the 2nd of this month, touching the double-digit range for the first time in the second half of the year. It subsequently recorded double-digit market shares five times (on the 2nd, 5th, 17th, 19th, and 20th). Digital X also expanded its mid-September market share to the 2nd% to 3% range before rising to 4.6% on the 17th of last month.
Market observers assess that the drastic measures by Coinone and Digital X have taken effect in tandem with investors’ heightened desire to cut costs amid a sideways market. The average daily trading volume of the five domestic exchanges, which had decreased to around 12,000 Bitcoin (BTC) equivalents in early to mid-August, surged to 34,000 BTC by late August on the back of a short-term price rebound, before cooling down again to 25,000 BTC in September and 22,000 BTC this month. Analysts say that demand seeking to avoid fee burdens has flowed into the two exchanges in a market where expectations for capital gains have declined.
Governance restructuring led to aggressive strategies. Digital X received funding through a rights offering (paid-in capital increase) of 50 billion won in August, after Mirae Asset Consulting acquired 97.15% of its shares for approximately 140 billion won. Coinone also welcomed Korea Investment & Securities and OKX Ventures as joint third-largest shareholders (each holding 20% of the shares) in July last month. Unlike Upbit and Bithumb, which recorded soaring performance last year but have been struggling with base effects this year, Coinone and Digital X had minimal profit scales in the previous year, allowing them to take bold steps, according to some interpretations.
Industry interest in future market dynamics is focused on whether additional user inflows will occur due to integration with traditional finance. Given the market landscape where market shares have repeatedly dropped immediately after promotions ended, it is pointed out that Coinone and Digital X urgently need measures to prevent customer churn. Coinone has linked Korea Investment & Securities’ web trading system (WTS) to its app’s main screen to support domestic stock trading, and equipped the Korea Investment Securities app with a virtual asset price service. Digital X, which unified its company name and service name, plans to expand its product lineup into real-world assets (RWA), security token offerings (STO), and stablecoins by integrating Mirae Asset Group’s financial infrastructure.
in STOCK
