South Korea's two leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb, have simultaneously announced the listing of the Aztec (AZTEC) token on their spot trading platforms. The dual listing triggered an immediate and dramatic market reaction, with the token's price surging approximately 82% in 24 hours to around $0.035.
Listing Details and Trading Parameters: Both exchanges will list AZTEC against the South Korean Won (KRW), Bitcoin (BTC), and Tether (USDT). Bithumb specified that deposits and withdrawals will be supported exclusively via the Ethereum network, requiring 33 block confirmations. Trading was scheduled to commence at 4:30 PM KST on February 20, 2026, with deposits opening two hours prior. Upbit implemented initial trading safeguards, including a 5-minute restriction on buy orders after launch and temporary limits on sell orders outside specific price ranges. Only limit orders were valid for the first two hours of trading. Bithumb set a reference price of 27.70 KRW.
Market Impact and the "Kimchi Premium": The announcement catalyzed a wave of KRW-denominated buying into a thinly traded market. Analysts note that a KRW pairing is a significant event, transforming a token from a crypto-native asset to one accessible to South Korea's massive retail trading base. "Korean listings still matter because they flip a token from being crypto-only to something a huge retail base can buy directly with local currency," the report states. The country consistently ranks among the top three globally for crypto trading volume relative to population, with Upbit's daily spot turnover often rivaling that of Coinbase.
This exposure created a classic momentum event, where traders rush in before liquidity deepens and the initial premium fades. The resulting price spike widened the so-called "kimchi premium"—the spread between Korean and international prices—before arbitrageurs stepped in to buy on global venues and sell into the Korean bid, gradually narrowing the gap as the Asian evening session progressed.
Project Background: Aztec is an Ethereum-based, privacy-focused Layer-2 solution that utilizes zero-knowledge proof technology to enable encrypted transactions and programmable smart contracts on a public blockchain. The AZTEC token is used for staking, paying transaction fees, and governance. Both exchanges issued standard warnings to investors about the high risks involved and advised careful verification of network and contract addresses before transferring funds.
