Korbit and Coinone launch zero-fee trading to challenge market leaders

South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges Korbit and Coinone have launched aggressive zero-fee trading initiatives to capture market share from dominant players Upbit and Bithumb, which together control over 97% of the market.

Korbit, now part of Mirae Asset Group, has implemented a one-year total waiver of trading fees for all items in its KRW market. Following this move, Coinone also introduced a 0% fee policy via a voucher system that allows users to renew exemptions every 30 days. While these moves have successfully boosted trading volumes—with Korbit seeing a 3.4-fold increase in volume following its announcement—concerns remain regarding long-term profitability and the ability to retain users once fees are reinstated.

Despite the surge in volume, Korbit faces scrutiny regarding liquidity. Analysis shows that 84.5% of its listed altcoins had average daily trading volumes of less than 10 million KRW. Mirae Asset Group Chairman Park Hyeon-joo has previously criticized the indiscriminate listing of altcoins in the domestic market, prompting questions about whether Korbit will restructure its listings to improve quality and liquidity.