Major cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea, Upbit and Bithumb, have reported their financial results for the first six months of 2026. Both companies recorded a revenue drop of about 50%, but their outcomes differed.
Both Dunamu, Upbit's parent company, and Bithumb published their reports on August 14, 2026. They cover the period from January 1 to June 30, 2026, inclusive.
The reports indicate that the first six months of this year were a period of business cooling for both companies. Dunamu's revenue decreased by 49.1% year-on-year to 408.1 billion won ($288.9 million), while Bithumb's revenue fell by 48.7% to 168.8 billion won ($119.5 million).
This is primarily linked to the overall market situation. A decline in investor activity and trading volumes directly impacted the commission income of both platforms.
However, Dunamu maintained an operating profit of 111.5 billion won ($78.9 million) and a net profit of 108.4 billion won ($76.7 million). The operating margin was about 27%, though it had exceeded 68% a year earlier.
Bithumb also remained profitable at the level of its core operations, earning 14.9 billion won ($10.5 million) in operating profit. However, its operating margin declined to approximately 8.8%. Furthermore, the company actively reduced costs.
Sales incentive expenses decreased by about 70%, advertising was also cut, and total operating expenses fell by 35.6%. In Q2, Bithumb's operating margin reached approximately 14%, slightly exceeding Dunamu's figure of 13.5%.
The main difference between the companies manifested below the operating profit level. Bithumb incurred a net loss of 108.7 billion won ($76.9 million). For comparison, in the first half of 2025, the company recorded a net profit of 55 billion won ($38.9 million).
Non-operating expenses amounting to 155.1 billion won ($109.8 million) played a significant role, including 73.4 billion won ($52 million) in losses from the disposal of digital assets and additional losses from their revaluation.
Separately, the company reflected expected expenses related to a regulatory investigation. As a result, the relatively small operating profit was insufficient to compensate for these items.
The financial statements also reveal a common structural problem for both exchanges—an extremely high dependence on trading commissions. For Dunamu, revenues from the trading platform amounted to about 395.5 billion won ($280 million), or approximately 97% of all revenue.
For Bithumb, commission revenue was about 168.7 billion won ($119.4 million), meaning it constituted practically the entire revenue stream. Client funds on both platforms decreased by about 35%.
It is also worth noting that this trend is observed across the South Korean cryptocurrency sector as a whole. According to Bitwatch, the total trading volume on the five fully licensed domestic exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax—decreased by 49.5% in Q2 compared to the same period last year, amounting to $146.43 billion.
Besides the decline in financial indicators in the first half of the year, both companies faced other challenges. An investigation is underway in South Korea against Bithumb CEO Lee Jae-won, and Upbit faced another hack in November 2025.
