As artificial intelligence hype penetrates the cryptocurrency field, risk-loving Korean traders are heavily involved in digital assets related to artificial intelligence themes.

Kaiko data shows that the share of Korean artificial intelligence tokens in global weekly trading volume rose from a low point of 0.6% in mid-2023 to 18.7% in May 2024. Such tokens are usually issued by early projects seeking to deploy blockchain technology to artificial intelligence services - the practicality of this combination has not yet been proven.

Research shows that many Koreans are fascinated by both artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies. About 10% of the population has had contact with tokens, and the main traded currencies locally are tokens with relatively small volatility (rather than Bitcoin and Ethereum).

Kaiko said that since February, the average weekly trading volume of Korean artificial intelligence tokens has been $8 billion, far higher than the historical low of $300 million in mid-2023.

At the same time, data from Korean securities custodians shows that Nvidia and Microsoft are ranked second and third, respectively, among the most popular overseas stocks for Korean investors this year. (Bloomberg)