South Korean presidential elections have crypto high on their agenda

After months of political crisis, South Korea is organizing a presidential election tomorrow. Crypto is very high on the agenda since a third of the population owns digital currencies. Probably even more important is what the winner thinks about stablecoins. The digital currencies that allow you to easily convert your Korean Won into dollars (and thus cause capital flight) are becoming an ever greater problem for the government there.

Won

On December 3, 2024, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeo declared martial law for the entire country just as parliament wanted to impeach him. The military intervened and about six months later, a new president will finally be elected.

As crypto is very popular in the country, the main candidates are obliged to have an opinion on it, but even more important is what the winner thinks about stablecoins.

After all, the local fiat currency, the Korean won, has been under pressure for a decade now and South Koreans are increasingly using stablecoins such as Tether to engage in capital flight and convert their money into US dollars. In the first quarter of this year alone, some 40 billion dollars left the South Korean mainland in this way.

Kimchi

Residents of Seoul, Busan and Incheon are increasingly looking at alternative investment opportunities such as Bitcoin. On average, the price of Bitcoin in South Korea is listed slightly higher than in other countries (a price difference between 3 and 5% usually), a phenomenon known as the ‘Kimchi Premium’.