Dunamu, the operator of Korea’s largest crypto exchange, has been enjoying its profit surging with transactions exceeding that of global competitor Coinbase, market data showed Thursday.

For the first quarter of this year, Dunamu, which operates Upbit, Korea’s largest digital coin exchange by transaction volume, is expected to see revenue of 590 billion won ($528 million) with extreme profit rates. The company’s estimated operating profit is 544 billion won and net profit at 472 billion won.

The first-quarter figures went far beyond the market expectation of 460 billion won in revenue and 418 billion won in operating profit. The higher-than-anticipated financial results came as many young investors flocked to the emerging digital asset transactions on the hills of fear of missing.

Upbit witnessed a record 307 billion won in sales in March alone. The upward movement continued in April when the daily transactions climbed to a daily average of 19 trillion won, exceeding that of US exchange Coinbase’s 2.9 trillion won for 11 days earlier in April. Coinbase provided estimated first-quarter financials with a revenue of $1.8 billion and net income between $730 million and $800 million.

The US crypto exchange made a debut on the Nasdaq market on April 15 in a hallmark event that could accelerate the legalization of digital asset exchanges and fetched $85 billion market valuation upon the IPO.

With soaring transactions and profitability, Dunamu is reportedly seeking a New York Stock Exchange listing in 2023, industry sources said.

Dunamu‘s stellar performance comes in line with a dramatic surge in global transactions of virtual coins that grew sixfold in the past six months,

The total trading volume by global crypto exchanges around the world reached $2.99 trillion in March, growing six times from the $500 billion levels recorded in October, according to CryptoCompare, a digital asset data provider. 

By Park Ga-young (gypark@hearldcorp.com)