South Korean Crypto Investors Face ‘Nail-biting’ Lunar New Year Conundrum

The South Korean crypto community is facing a tense Lunar New Year break, experts are claiming, as the year’s longest holiday coincides with a key time for Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoin markets.

Per Seoul Shinmun, South Korean crypto traders are “troubled.” They are concerned by the fact that the holiday “overlaps with the US Federal Reserve’s upcoming base rate decision,” the outlet wrote.

South Korean Crypto Community: Time to HODL, Sell, or Buy?

As such, the outlet reported, domestic traders are unsure if they should hold, pre-emptively sell, or even buy coins during the holiday.

This year, Lunar New Year falls on January 29. But in South Korea – as the days prior to and following New Year’s Day are also public holidays – most firms are also giving their workers the day off on Monday (27) and Friday (31).

That means that, including the two weekends, most workers have nine days off this year. But while the South Korean stock market will be inactive during the holidays, the 24/7 nature of crypto means no such slowdown is expected in the coin markets.

The media outlet said Upbit crypto exchange data shows domestic Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH) prices trended upward “during the Lunar New Year holiday for the past three years.”

Korea started the Lunar New Year holiday with scattered rain and snow flurries on Monday, although most areas have seen only a few snowflakes.
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— The Korea JoongAng Daily (@JoongAngDaily) January 27, 2025

Holiday Uncertainty for Traders

Kim (first name withheld) is a Seoul-based crypto trader. He told Cryptonews.com that the holiday period would likely be full of “uncertainty” this year. Kim said:

“It will be a bit of a nail-biting time if the Fed or US President Donald Trump make announcements. If so, the South Korean market will probably respond fast. But traders are always ready for volatility in the markets. We just have to stay alert. That’s the nature of trading crypto.”

The holiday period, however, has also seen significant drops. These have included instances of day-on-day drops of up to 5%.

For South Korean traders, almost everything will hinge on events in the USA, the media outlet reported.

Domestic regulators and politicians are unlikely to make any major announcements during the holidays.

So events in Washington will likely be the driving force behind any price movements on domestic platforms.

Seoul Shinmun noted that “since the election of Trump,” interest “in cryptocurrency investment has increased in South Korea.”

The Fed is widely expected to freeze its current benchmark interest rate of 4.25-4.50% at the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, which kicks off on January 28.

South Korea is undergoing an unprecedented political crisis with impeached President Yoon facing one legal proceeding that could oust him from office and another that brings a possible death penalty. Here's what to know. https://t.co/jKB92C62QD

— Bloomberg Politics (@bpolitics) January 27, 2025

Experts Speak

The crypto services provider Matrixport told the same media outlet:

“In the past 12 years, Bitcoin has risen 11 times during the Lunar New Year holiday period. Negative factors such as the Fed’s hawkish stance are putting downward pressure on the markets. But positive factors, like expectations about a forthcoming strategic Bitcoin reserve in the US, are supporting BTC prices. So there is a high probability of an increase in the days following the Lunar New Year holiday.”

An unnamed domestic crypto exchange employee told Seoul Shinmun:

“Since Trump’s election, market liquidity has increased rapidly. And South Korean trading volumes here have increased to a level surpassing that of the stock market. The crypto market operates 24 hours a day and is highly volatile. So people would be wise to take a cautious approach.”