July Crypto Trading Volume Hits Yearly Low... All Eyes on the 'Clarity Act' [Crypto Briefing]

[Financial News] Domestic cryptocurrency trading volume in July plunged to its lowest level of the year. The slump appears to reflect the market’s failure to recover after the outbreak of the war in the Middle East. Market participants are now calling for faster regulatory progress, saying a rebound will depend on renewed global legislative momentum.
According to CoinGecko on the 3rd, trading volume last month across South Korea’s five major won-based exchanges — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and GOPAX — came to $14.46732 billion, the lowest this year. Domestic crypto trading volume had not fallen into the $14 billion range since December last year, when it stood at $14.0615 billion.
Trading volume in South Korea has been on a steady decline this year. It started at $73.52378 billion in January, then fell to $84.38404 billion in February, $57.67785 billion in March, $53.16192 billion in April, $43.95403 billion in May, $17.49388 billion in June and $14.46732 billion in July.
The decline reflects the broader downturn in cryptocurrencies, led by Bitcoin. From the start of the year through the previous day, Bitcoin fell 27.5%. Over the same period, Ethereum and XRP (Ripple) dropped 36.56% and 40.98%, respectively.
Lee Jun-ho, a researcher at Hana Securities, said, "The cryptocurrency market is showing a downward trend." He added, "It is true that blockchain is expected to benefit significantly as it is applied to financial infrastructure, but in the short term, broader price gains across cryptocurrencies will need to accompany that for people to agree."
The market believes cryptocurrencies could rebound if the U.S. passes the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act this year. However, that would require the bill to clear a vote before the U.S. Congress begins its summer recess on the 7th local time. After the recess, the midterm election schedule will make passage less likely.
Sungwook Hong, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, said, "Securing 60 votes for passage remains uncertain, but Republicans plan to bring the bill to a Senate vote this week." He added, "If it does not pass by the 7th, the chances of passage this year will drop sharply because of the midterm election schedule." He also predicted, "Downward pressure will continue until the market accepts that passage this year is difficult."
Meanwhile, domestic legislation is also expected to accelerate. Lee Eok-won, chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), said during a work report to the National Policy Committee of the National Assembly on the 29th of last month, "The government bill for the General Act on Digital Assets has been prepared, but there are some differences of opinion." He added, "We will move forward as quickly as possible."
Lee Jun-ho said, "Chairman Lee has indicated that the government bill is ready, and the ruling party also wants to pass it this year, so handling of the General Act on Digital Assets is likely to become visible after this month." He added, "During the legislative process for the General Act on Digital Assets, rather than a reckless rally driven by business expansion like in June last year, I expect corporate value to be reflected in line with actual business competitiveness."
[email protected] Lim Sang-hyeok Reporter