# Bithumb

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/bithumb
> research date 2026-06-01 · extracted at 2026-10-03
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [Bithumb — official](https://www.bithumb.com/)

## Key details

- **Launch:** 2014

## Overview
**Bithumb** is **one of South Korea's largest and oldest cryptocurrency exchanges**, historically the main rival to Upbit in the Korean won spot market <sup>[1][1], [2][2], [Korea, Republic of report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/KR)</sup>. It operates under Korea's strict real-name verification and VASP registration regime and has been preparing for a domestic public listing.

## History
**2014 — Bithumb launched** in Seoul, becoming an early dominant exchange in the Korean market.
**2017–2018 — surges with the crypto boom**, at times among the world's highest-volume exchanges, but also weathers security and regulatory incidents.
**2021 — registers as a VASP** under the Specific Financial Information Act, integrating real-name bank-account verification (with NongHyup, later other partners).
**2023–2024 — restructures ownership and governance** amid investigations into prior shareholders.
**2024–2025 — advances plans for a domestic IPO/listing** in South Korea while remaining a top-two won-market exchange.

## Ownership & operator
**Operating entity**: **Bithumb Korea Co., Ltd.** (Seoul, South Korea).
**Major shareholders**: **Bithumb Holdings and associated Korean investors** (ownership has been subject to restructuring and legal disputes).
**Regulators**: **South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC)** and **Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU)**.

## Technical integration
Mobile and web apps with a trading API. Supports BTC, ETH and a broad token roster via crypto deposit addresses. Korean won funding/withdrawal requires real-name verified bank accounts in line with Korean KYC rules.

## Implementations & partners
**Major competitors**: [Upbit](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/upbit) (Korean market leader) + [Binance](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/binance) (global exchange) + [Coinbase](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/coinbase) (global exchange).

## Status
**Active, a top-two South Korean crypto exchange preparing for a domestic listing** <sup>[1][1], [2][2]</sup>.

## Sources

[1]: https://www.bithumb.com/ "Bithumb — official"
[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bithumb "Bithumb — Wikipedia"
[kr-cro]: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/KR

- [1] [Bithumb — official][1]
- [2] [Bithumb — Wikipedia][2]
- <sup>[Korea, Republic of report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/KR)</sup> In-corpus: `reports/countries/KR-south-korea.md`

## Source

Biography extracted from [bithumb.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/source/wallets/bithumb). See `matrix.md` for standards-support matrix if present.