Upbit makes its move into Thai, Indonesian markets

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Upbit, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea, has reportedly set up a website for crypto exchanges in Thai and Indonesian languages, as part of its attempt to market its trading services to customers in the two Asian countries.

Last week, South Korean news outlet Edaily quoted the crypto exchange saying that both countries “appreciated the growth potential of the cryptographic industry.” Thailand, in particular, has seen its government recently making an effort to cultivate the sector, while Indonesia is “regarded as the biggest hand of the Southeast Asian cryptography market,” creating jobs, attracting foreign capital, and introducing technology for the fourth industrial revolution such as the blockchain.

The new exchanges are part of Upbit global expansion plans. According to reports, the company will trade over 130 coins, and 240 trading pairs will be offered on the new Upbit exchanges.

Dunamu Inc., an affiliate of Kakao Corp., operates Upbit. The crypto exchange is also affiliated with U.S.-based exchange Bittrex.

While speaking to local reporters, Lee Seok-woo the CEO of Dunamiu stated Upbit has always aimed at providing foreign exchange services to people around the globe. He told the South Korean news outlet, “I am in a desperate situation that I can lose a great opportunity if I miss this period… the competition is spreading.”

In addition to the new exchanges, the Upbit community received a new exchange in Singapore. The exchange was launched officially to support Singapore dollars. Customers using the new platforms will use the local currencies—baht in Thailand and rupiah in Indonesia.

On the Thai Upbit website, the company state that its services are in “closed beta” phase. The website explained that Upbit services are only available to a small group of Individuals who registered early with the platform.

The website in Indonesia is different from the one in Thailand. The site displays different features and message. It states: “Buy and sell the latest crypto assets from our partner, Bittrex, the premium exchange from the United States.”

The website also says that the Indonesian platform will support 156 coins and 276 trading pairs. This is smaller figures compare to the 131 coins and 241 trading pairs on Thailand platform.

Authorities in Thailand have set up regulation to govern the cryptocurrency and blockchain sectors. So far, the government has allowed six crypto exchanges and one dealer to run cryptocurrency operations in the country.