Over 10,000 Koreans hold more than 1 bn won in crypto assets

More than 10,000 South Koreans each hold cryptocurrencies worth over 1 billion won ($740,000), with their combined assets totaling 24 trillion won ($17.7 billion), according to government data released this week.

The figure highlights the rapid shift of wealthy investors toward digital assets, as Seoul is moving to tighten capital gains tax rules for major shareholders in stocks. Under the proposal, starting next year, anyone holding more than 1 billion won in equities would face a 20%–30% tax on disposal gains. Crypto assets, however, remain tax-free regardless of size.

The Financial Supervisory Service told Rep. Park Sung-hoon of the People Power Party that as of Aug. 5, some 10,810 investors across South Korea’s five major crypto exchanges — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax — owned over 1 billion won each. Their average holding was 2.23 billion won per person.

By age group, investors in their 50s were the largest cohort with 3,994 people, followed by those in their 40s (3,086), 60s and older (2,426), and 30s (1,167).

Although only 137 investors in their 20s crossed the 1 billion won threshold — the smallest group — they ranked first in per-capita holdings with an average of 2.69 billion won, outpacing those in their 50s by more than 25%.

Overall, 10.87 million Koreans had accounts at the five exchanges, holding digital assets worth 111.7 trillion won ($82 billion). Investors in their 30s comprised the largest segment, with approximately 3 million account holders.

Analysts say the government’s new tax policy could accelerate the migration of capital from equities to crypto, underscoring South Korea’s growing role in the global digital asset market.

Write to Eui-Jin Chung at justjin@hankyung.com