A recent report in the Korean Times indicates that the Klay crypto coin will make its crypto exchange debut on Upbit, an exchange based in Indonesia. Reports of the coin’s listing on an exchange first emerged at the start of September. The news at the time indicated Kakao was looking to have the coin listed on an exchange based in Asia.
Kakao Korea
According to Kakao’s spokesperson, they decided to list the Klay coin on the exchange since Klaytn would be an Asian-focused platform. The Klay coin will be the Klaytn platform’s native coin. Ground X created this platform; it is Kakao’s blockchain development subsidiary. Kakao’s focus for Klaytn will be as a gaming platform for Asian gamers.
Kakao Token Sale
During the Kakao private token sale that was held in 2018, they managed to raise $90 million. Kakao corporation is quite large. It is estimated that it has $8 billion in assets. This makes it one of the 50 largest firms in South Korea. The KakaoTalk app, which it owns is estimated to have over 400 million users globally.
Ground X has been with Asian tech giants such as LG and Samsung. Through the Samsung Partnership, they have managed to have the Klay coin listed on Samsung’s proprietary wallet app, which will debut is Samsung’s latest mobile devices.
Avoiding South Korean Exchanges
Since Kakao is based in South Korea, many assumed that it would have listed the coins on a Korean exchange initially. However, that has not been the case. In fact, Ground X itself is not based in South Korea. This is partly due to how tough the regulators have been on the crypto industry. Many Asian exchanges understand this issue and they even allow users from South Korea to open Won accounts to attract startups from the nation.
Some reports indicate that local exchanges in South Korea are banned from processing transactions using the Won. In fact, the problem is so bad that about 97% of exchanges in the nation are on the brink of bankruptcy.
For instance, only the top four exchanges in the nation made a profit. Some of the smaller exchanges have had to shut down their operations due to the tough working conditions. For smaller exchanges, it is almost impossible to comply with all the regulations. To do something as simple as opening a bank account has proven near impossible for these small exchanges.
Only the largest exchanges in the nation have the financial muscle and personnel to comply with all the tough AML requirements imposed by the regulator. Even then, these major exchanges have to go through a rigorous vetting process before banks can allow them to open an account with them.
Listing of the Coin
Upbit announced that the listing would be via a Dutch auction. To mark the listing in Upbeat Indonesia and upbeat Singapore, Upbit will hold an airdrop event where 5 million Klay tokens will be given away. Details of the airdrop can be found here and here.
Image Source: Klaytn Twitter
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