Following the U.S. presidential election on November 5, 2024, crypto trading activity in South Korea has surged, driven by a renewed interest in altcoins. With the victory of pro-crypto candidate Donald Trump, retail investors are flocking back to exchanges, particularly Upbit, the nation’s largest exchange. Upbit now accounts for over 70% of South Korea’s total crypto trading volume, which has jumped to $14.3 billion, an 11-fold increase since election day, according to Coingecko.

The surge in trading volume is being led by smaller cryptocurrencies like Dogecoin (DOGE), XRP, and Stellar (XLM), which have experienced significant price gains. DOGE/KRW has been the most traded pair on Upbit for 10 consecutive days, while XRP and XLM also ranked highly. These altcoins have seen impressive increases in value, with DOGE up 188%, XRP up 164%, and XLM up 463% over the past month, though they remain below their 2021 highs. Meanwhile, Bitcoin (BTC), which recently traded near $100,000, continues to maintain its market leadership.

Markus Thielen from 10x Research pointed out that altcoins are now overtaking Bitcoin in trading volume, signaling a shift in investor focus towards high-risk, high-reward cryptocurrencies. The trend isn’t confined to just these established altcoins; metaverse tokens like SAND have also seen renewed interest, with SAND’s price increasing by more than 200% this month. Despite this, it is still far below its peak of $8.49 in November 2021.

The crypto landscape in South Korea is becoming more diversified, with investors showing increased appetite for speculative plays, particularly in the altcoin and metaverse sectors. As the market continues to recover, the enthusiasm for smaller tokens and new market sectors may signal the beginning of another bull run.