Coin Market Soars 2,266 Times in a Day... Volatile Swings Continue

Virtual Currency 'Rueda' Surges from 30 Won to 68,000 Won in 10 Minutes After Listing
Drops to Around 37,500 Won 5 Minutes Later... Extreme Volatility
'Leader' Bitcoin Also Shakes Recently... Falls Up to 59% in a Day

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[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Amid unprecedented volatility in global stock markets caused by fears over the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the cryptocurrency market has also experienced unprecedented wild fluctuations. There was even a cryptocurrency that surged 2,266 times in value just one day after its listing.

According to cryptocurrency exchange Coinbit on the 24th, 'Rueda,' which was listed at 30 won at 8:05 PM the previous day, surged 2,366 times to 68,000 won just 10 minutes later. Five minutes after that, it plummeted to 37,500 won. After repeating several rounds of sharp rises and falls, as of 4:50 PM on the same day, it was trading around 48,000 won. Industry insiders are even suspecting that this might be wash trading aimed at profiting from price differences immediately after listing. This level of volatility is incomparable to that seen in regulated stock markets.

Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, has also been fluctuating wildly. According to the domestic cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, Bitcoin was trading at 8.17 million won as of 5 PM. This is more than a 13% increase compared to the previous day's low of 7.22 million won. Bitcoin prices, which had maintained the 10 million won range until the 8th, plunged from 9.54 million won to 5.98 million won in a single day on the 9th. The next day, it dropped further to the annual low of 5.49 million won before rebounding to the 7 million won range. Despite being called the 'blue chip' with the least volatility, its price fluctuated by up to about 59% in a single day.

In particular, since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on the 12th, prices have been volatile, leading to claims that cryptocurrencies can no longer be considered safe assets like gold. Bell Harvey, a professor of economics at Duke University in the United States, pointed out, "If Bitcoin had been a safe asset in the recent macroeconomic environment, its value should have been maintained or increased, but instead, its price dropped by more than 10%."