South Korean Exchanges Upbit, Bithumb Suspend SNX Deposits After Warning from DAXA

Leading South Korean crypto exchanges Upbit and Bithumb have suspended deposits for Synthetix (SNX) following a cautionary alert issued by the Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA).

DAXA, a self-regulatory body responsible for setting industry standards across South Korean exchanges, designated SNX as an asset requiring investor caution.

Such a classification typically triggers enhanced scrutiny, with common responses including tagging assets with warnings, halting deposits, or suspending trading to protect investors from heightened volatility.

Upbit Flags SNX with Cautionary Label and Suspends Deposits

In a note, Upbit announced it has placed a cautionary label on SNX and temporarily blocked token deposits.

The exchange cited concerns over the recent depegging of Synthetix’s stablecoin, sUSD, noting that SNX—used as collateral for sUSD—could expose investors to significant risks.

Upbit further highlighted a perceived lack of clear use cases for SNX, stating it would conduct a comprehensive evaluation before deciding on a possible delisting.

Synthetix ( $SNX ) stablecoin’s been off the peg for 50 days.

South Korea said “nah,” and now deposits are frozen till May 2025.

Stablecoin vibes? Not so stable. pic.twitter.com/49WeYR2Zmr

— GmHodler (@GmHodler) April 24, 2025

Bithumb followed suit, suspending SNX deposits and issuing a similar warning. However, the exchange indicated that restrictions could be lifted if underlying issues are resolved.

Other major South Korean platforms, including Korbit and Coinone, also issued investor alerts, adding cautionary tags to SNX but stopping short of suspending deposits or trading.

The heightened scrutiny comes after sUSD, Synthetix’s stablecoin, fell sharply below its dollar peg.

On April 10, sUSD dropped to $0.83—the lowest level in five years—before plunging further to $0.68 by April 18. SNX, the native token of the Synthetix protocol, has since declined by 26% over the past month.

Synthetix founder Kain Warwick recently urged SNX stakers to adopt a new staking mechanism aimed at stabilizing sUSD, warning of potential penalties if participation remained low.

The sUSD 420 Pool, introduced on April 18, offers stakers a share of 5 million SNX tokens over a 12-month period if they lock their sUSD in the pool for a full year.

Despite these efforts, sUSD has only partially recovered, reaching $0.87 on April 24 but still failing to regain its peg.

Stablecoin Depegs Remain a Recurring Challenge

Depegs in the stablecoin space are not uncommon. USDC briefly lost its peg in March 2023 after Circle revealed $3.3 billion in reserves were stuck with the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank.

Similarly, TrueUSD (TUSD) dropped below $1 earlier this year amid a wave of redemptions.

Despite the challenges, the stablecoin sector has grown steadily, with total market capitalization surpassing $200 billion in 2025 and transaction volume hitting $27.6 trillion—exceeding the combined annual volume of Visa and Mastercard.

In March, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell affirmed the central bank’s support for developing a regulatory framework around stablecoins during a Senate hearing.

Powell stated that the Federal Reserve supports the creation of a regulatory framework for stablecoins, noting the importance of protecting consumers and savers.