South Korea’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, Upbit, has announced support for Internet Computer (ICP) trading pairs with the Korean won, Bitcoin, and Tether. The news sparked a rapid uptick in ICP’s price, with the token registering notable gains shortly after the announcement.
New Trading Pairs Fuel Market Excitement
With the listing unveiled on March 11, Upbit has made it possible for Korean investors to directly buy and sell ICP using their local currency for the first time. ICP’s price swiftly climbed from $2.40 to $2.90 within just a few hours, reflecting a surge in demand largely driven by heightened activity from local traders.
Upbit holds a dominant share of the Korean crypto market, and new listings on the platform often correlate with rapid short-term price increases for the tokens involved. Previous listings have shown similar patterns, with newly added assets experiencing significant volatility in the hours following their introduction.
Market Support Update – Internet Computer (ICP)
Supported Markets: KRW, BTC, USDT Market
Trading opens at: 2026-03-11 17:00 KST estimated
Korean Traders Move In as Upbit Implements Safeguards
By facilitating ICP-KRW trades, Upbit enabled local investors to enter the ICP market without the need to convert into stablecoins. These kinds of direct listings have historically led to sharp, sometimes short-lived, price spikes. Still, experience has shown that such rallying momentum can be fleeting, with corrections often following intense early demand.
To guard against excessive volatility, Upbit introduced its standard risk-mitigation measures when trading began. Deposits for the token opened approximately 90 minutes after the listing announcement, but purchase orders were suspended for the first five minutes of trading. Additionally, sell orders set more than 10 percent below the previous day’s closing price were temporarily disabled to prevent panic selling.
Understanding Internet Computer: Technology and Roadmap
Internet Computer, created by the DFINITY Foundation, aims to provide a decentralized platform for running applications and hosting internet services natively on blockchain. The project’s economic model is structured so that as network usage grows, more ICP tokens are burned, helping to regulate supply and maintain value.
The DFINITY Foundation has also launched a new strategic initiative titled “Mission 70,” targeting a 70 percent reduction in ICP token inflation by the end of 2026. The plan includes adopting the 80/20 Cloud Engine model to redistribute ecosystem revenues, intensifying token burns for high-demand network services, and expanding support for new use cases—particularly those involving artificial intelligence infrastructure.
These updates are designed to bolster both the technical capabilities of the platform and the equilibrium between ICP’s supply and demand. Meanwhile, Upbit’s listing has further eased access to ICP in South Korea, fueling an immediate rise in trading activity and price movements in the token.
