(Getty Images)

Cryptocurrency exchange operator Crypto.com said Tuesday it would launch its exchange app service in Korea this month while expressing its hope for winning the regulatory nod for Korean won-based transactions soon, the company announced Tuesday.

The firm said it will launch an exchange app for Korean users on April 29, enabling coin-to-coin transactions through the license earned by local exchange OK-Bit. Through the launch, Crypto.com will become the first regulated foreign player to operate a service here, it explained.

“The first product we will be launching in Korea is the Crypto.com app, which is our most popular product globally. We have been localizing and adapting it to the Korean market needs over the last 12 months,” Eric Anziani, president and chief operating officer at Crypto.com, said at a press conference in Seoul.

“It is a fully mobile product offering a convenient and safe way to buy, sell and store digital assets including non-fungible tokens, enabling Korean customers to access global prices in a regulated manner.”

Users of the app will be able to execute transactions of virtual assets at a global price through the exchange service, without the so-called “kimchi premium,” which refers to the price discrepancy of the assets between Korean and international markets, Anziani explained.

With the local market heavily dominated by major players such as Upbit and Bithumb, Crypto.com views that it may not be able to take up a significant market share here through the launch of coin-to-coin trading. For the time being, its goal lies more in reputation building, the company said.

“We are not likely to see a spike in transaction volume through just coin-to-coin trading. Building a reputation for Crypto.com will be a big win for us, rather than achieving high sales in the short term,” said Patrick Yoon, general manager of Crypto.com's Korean subsidiary.

Eric Anziani, president and chief operating officer at Crypto.com, speaks at a press conference at FKI Tower in Yeouido, western Seoul, Tuesday. (Crypto.com)

In the meantime, Crypto.com will make efforts to earn a license to trade Korean won into virtual assets, such as partnering with a local bank for real-name accounts.

“Earning approval to use real-name accounts for Korean won trading is not easy, especially for a global exchange to launch operations here for the first time. But we will have to try,” Yoon said.

Anziani stressed Crypto.com has extensive experience in working with regulatory bodies across the world.

“Over the years, we have built an extensive network of banking relationships in the US, Canada, the UK, Europe and Singapore,” Anziani said, adding that it operates a local team to understand the requirements of a regulator.

“It is something that we have been doing across the globe. We are known to be that bridge between traditional money and digital money.”

By Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)
The Korea Herald