In Brief
- Upbit recorded 1.15 trillion won, roughly $830 million, in trading volume within a single hour on Saturday.
- The spike extends a two-day streak, after Upbit’s daily volume already jumped 273% to $1.84 billion on August 21.
- XRP led the exchange’s volume distribution with 32.20%, followed by TRUMP at 10.93% and USDT at 8.39%
South Korea’s Upbit recorded 1.15 trillion won, roughly $830 million, in trading volume within a single hour on Saturday, with XRP and TRUMP dominating the surge.
The spike extends a rebound that began the previous day, when Upbit’s daily volume already jumped 273%.
Upbit’s trading volume distribution over the past 24 hours was led by XRP at 32.20%. Source: Upbit Datalab
What Drove Upbit’s Record Hourly Volume
XRP led the charge by a wide margin. The token accounted for 32.20% of Upbit’s 24-hour trading volume, ranking first among all traded assets, according to Upbit Datalab.
TRUMP ranked second on the exchange, contributing 10.93% of total volume. USDT followed in third place with 8.39%, while Ethereum and Bitcoin rounded out the top five at 5.44% and 5.40%, respectively.
Upbit’s total 24-hour trading volume reached approximately $3.81 billion, while rival exchanges Bithumb and Coinone recorded $1.954 billion and $172 million, respectively.
Saturday’s spike was not an isolated event. On August 21, Upbit’s daily volume had already jumped 273% to roughly $1.84 billion, marking the exchange’s highest daily volume since mid-March.
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The South Koreans are back, Upbit volume up 273% and Bithumb up 133%”Remember, I told you the South Koreans weren’t trading anymore. Crypto volumes were down massively, they’d gone to SK Hynix and Samsung and were using leveraged ETFs. Well, in the words of Poltergeist, they’re… https://t.co/uxkrA2cy5x pic.twitter.com/pzvvUU8Gv3
— The Wolf Of All Streets (@scottmelker) August 21, 2026
XRP topped that session too, contributing $418.9 million and ranking ahead of Bitcoin, USDT, and ETH. Bithumb recorded a similar increase that day, with volume climbing 132.9% to about $934.9 million.
Why the Rebound Follows Months of Weaker Activity
That earlier rebound followed months of weaker trading, as South Korean investors favored domestic equities while the KOSPI climbed to record highs on AI-driven semiconductor demand. Upbit and Bithumb both reported declines in operating revenue of nearly 50% during the first half of 2026.
XRP traded near $1.44 at the time of writing, according to BeInCrypto data, up 2.1% over the past 24 hours despite an intraday flash crash and up nearly 50% over the past week. The token’s rally followed Ripple’s backing of a major XRP Ledger amendment, alongside strong ETF inflows.
That gain remains positive despite a brutal 37% flash crash earlier in the day, which briefly pushed XRP as low as $1.36 before it recovered, liquidating hundreds of millions in leveraged positions along the way.
TRUMP held its gains more cleanly. The token traded near $2.34, up 26% in 24 hours and more than 66% over the past week. Its all-time low of $1.37 came just nine days ago, on August 13.
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Speculation around a Robinhood Chain launch has fueled renewed interest in the token, alongside a broader recovery across Solana-based meme assets. Whether this two-day streak marks a lasting rotation back into crypto or another short-lived wave, as seen repeatedly this year, remains an open question for South Korean traders.
Read the article at BeInCrypto
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