China’s first cryptocurrency exchange, BTCC and one of the largest exchange by volume in the world at its time have set its sight to launch services in South Korea on October 31st, 2018.
BTCC, formerly known as BTC China, was forced to shut its operations after the regulatory crackdown on September 2017 and has shifted its operations to Hong Kong in January to continue with its services. According to its Korean version of the website, it will be offering wallet service, a mining pool, and a consumer payments service to the users of Korea.
The exchange will be launching beta service at the end of this month and after then, the official debut will be made in November. Its website states: “BTCC is establishing an on / offline payment system using cryptocurrency,” further adding, “is expanding services for real-life use.”
According to the reports from Investor, part of the Korea Herald, the BTCC’s Korea operations will be headed by Lee Jae-Beom. Commenting on the launch, Lee said:
“Cryptocurrency exchanges are facing a turning point due to a downturn in local exchanges while global exchanges are making a leap here. BTCC Korea will be able to present a new strategy and vision of crypto exchanges.”
Following the launch, it also plans to have strategic tie-ups with local and global firms to expand its footprint. Recently, the company has announced a partnership with Defytime, a producer of anti-ageing products to introduce blockchain in healthcare products.
The exchange has still not specified the coins it will offer for its Korean operations. In Hong Kong, the exchange facilitates trading in all major cryptocurrencies against the dollar, and that includes, USD – BTC, BCH, ETH, LTC, and DASH and against bitcoin, it offers BCH, ETH, LTC and DASH.
The South Korean crypto ecosystem is dominated by four major exchanges Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit in which Bithumb is the largest volume wise and Upbit is largest by the number of coins listed. BTCC’s entry to the South Korean crypto ecosystem would definitely going to affect the balance and also increase competition.
