#Gate 新上线 WLFI#
The two major cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea are simultaneously expanding their listing catalogs. According to the official announcement, Upbit will open trading pairs for USD1 against the Korean won at 16:00 KST on September 1, including (KRW), USDT, and Bitcoin (BTC). Additionally, at 22:00 that evening, WLFI will be further listed against KRW, USDT, and BTC.
On the same day at 16:00, Bithumb opened the USD1/KRW trading pair. This means that USD1 simultaneously gains a liquidity entry for direct access to Korean won, allowing Korean retail and quantitative funds to enter and exit directly with their local currency, thereby shortening the "conversion time" of funds between fiat currency and USD1. This also increases the momentum of WLFI in the market.
In terms of market structure, KRW-paired trading pairs often serve as amplifiers for the Korean market. With more tradable KRW pairs at the front end, the market-making and arbitrage paths are shorter, the price spread narrows faster, and trading density is easier to concentrate. For USD-denominated stablecoins, this is like adding a large "liquidity node" in Asia, where capital can flow in and out with lower friction, making it easier for market capitalization to soar.