KRX Pitches Busan as Crypto Derivatives Hub as TradFi Accelerates Bitcoin Products

South Korea’s Korea Exchange (KRX) announced plans on May 6 to introduce crypto derivatives and position Busan as a global digital-asset futures hub, following its earlier pledge to launch regulated Bitcoin and Ether products from the city. This development aligns with surging TradFi interest, as CME prepares Bitcoin volatility futures for June 1 (pending approval) and 24/7 trading from May 29, while Cboe offers continuous BTC/ETH futures. Centralized exchanges cleared $86.3 trillion in perpetuals last year amid daily volumes exceeding $100 billion, positioning KRX—with its $1.5 trillion market cap and $60 billion average daily trading—to capture institutional liquidity.