Increased interest in digital assets is one of the reasons South Korea’s Upbit is on an expansion drive. Reportedly, the exchange is planning for an additional exchange in Indonesia and another in Thailand.
Local media reports indicate that Upbit is seriously marketing the new exchanges. The company has already set up websites in the local languages in which the exchanges will operate.
In particular, Upbit details that the Thai exchange will list 131 tokens with 241 trading pairs. The Indonesian exchange will list 156 cryptocurrencies alongside 276 trading pairs. According to the Upbit team, the offerings are commensurate with the determined demand in both markets.
“Both countries appreciate the growth potential of the cryptocurrency industry. Thailand and Indonesia are very interested in blockchain and cryptocurrency, so we thought it would be a good thing to have an online presence before launch,” an Upbit statement reads as quoted by EDaily News.
Further, the entry into the two markets is a reflection of the progressive crypto laws they have in place.
Earlier in July, Thailand introduced a novel way on how to deal with cryptocurrency. This was at the time when regulators elsewhere had no idea how to categorize cryptocurrencies. The country enacted emergency decrees on cryptocurrencies.
Dubbed Digital Currency Business Decree, the decrees differentiate between cryptocurrencies and digital tokens. Particularly, the regime recognizes cryptocurrency as a medium of exchange while digital tokens are rights to participate in an investment.
New regulations
On the other hand, Indonesian regulators officially legalized cryptocurrency futures trading earlier in June. The move was quite surprising considering that the country’s Central Bank banned crypto-related activity in late 2017.
The picture is in stark contrast to the first half of this year where governments were tough on crypto-related businesses. This includes the May incident where Korean authorities raided Upbit. Later, the exchange announced to its clients that it was under investigation.
