Upbit Profit Crashes 85% Months After Korean Giants Paid $1.5 Billion to Buy In

Upbit profit collapsed in the second quarter. Operator Dunamu posted an 85% drop in operating profit as trading fees dried up at South Korea's largest crypto exchange.

The filing landed three months after Samsung, Hana Bank and Hanwha spent about $1.5 billion buying into the company. Together they now hold close to a fifth of it.

Upbit Profit Margins Fall From 88% to 14%

Dunamu filed its half year report with South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service on Friday. Quarterly operating profit came to 23.5 billion won, roughly $17 million. A year earlier the figure was $108 million.

Revenue alone does not explain it. Second quarter revenue fell 39%. Operating costs went the other way and rose 13%.

The squeeze shows up in the margin. Back in 2021, Dunamu turned 88 won of every 100 won of revenue into operating profit. Last quarter it kept 14.

Fees did the damage. Commission income from the Upbit trading platform dropped 49.8% in the first half to 395.5 billion won, near $279 million. That single line accounts for 97% of everything Dunamu earns.

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