South Korean crypto exchange Bithumb plans to go public in the U.S.

Bithumb, one of South Korea’s largest crypto exchanges, is eyeing a U.S. public listing on Nasdaq.

This plan came out during a shareholder meeting earlier today, where the company confirmed it is “reviewing listing on the US Nasdaq.”

The company has already put the wheels in motion for an Initial Public Offering (IPO), planning to hit the market in the second half of next year.

In March, Bithumb split its human resources to focus on its core business, which is “virtual assets exchange.” 

The non-core parts of the company, like its holding, investment, and real estate brokerage divisions, will be moved to a new entity reportedly named Bithumb A or Bithumb Investment.

Why Bithumb abandoned KOSDAQ

Bithumb has been down this road before. Back in 2020, the company tried to get listed on KOSDAQ, the South Korean stock market.

However, they dropped the idea due to unclear regulations around crypto assets and accounting standards. A company representative said that “all possibilities are open, not only domestically but also overseas.”

South Korea’s financial authorities don’t even recognize digital assets as financial products. Plus, there are no Bitcoin ETFs available in the country.

Instead, Bithumb could be taking a page out of Coinbase’s playbook. Coinbase, the largest U.S. crypto exchange, successfully listed on the Nasdaq.

South Korea’s Virtual Asset User Protection Act, launched on July 19, focuses on protecting investors from shady practices and forces virtual asset service providers (VASPs) to meet strict guidelines.

The law introduces several requirements, such as insurance coverage for exchanges in case of hacks or security breaches. Exchanges are also required to segregate customer assets from their own funds, making sure that investor money is protected even if an exchange goes under.

Also, VASPs must report suspicious transactions to the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU). Non-compliance could bring serious penalties, including prison time for illegal activities that generate over 5 billion won (around $3.7 million).

About 3 million South Koreans are actively involved in crypto trading. Upbit, Bithumb’s main competitor, dominates the South Korean market, controlling almost 80% of the market, with around 8 million registered users.