Most Influential: Sirgoo Lee

Finance Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Most Influential: Sirgoo Lee Lee shaped the exchange that defines Korea’s crypto market, but even after his exit this year, the country’s hyperactive retail engine will keep moving. By Sam Reynolds | Edited by Cheyenne Ligon Dec 11, 2025, 3:00 p.m. South Korea’s crypto market became one of the busiest trading arenas in the world in 2025, with enthusiastic retail investors powering global surges in XRP, Dogecoin, and many of the memecoins that dominated this cycle. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . At the center of that liquidity stood Upbit, the exchange that routinely captured more than 80% of the country’s onshore volume and at times moved worldwide prices when a coin listed or spiked. That market was shaped by one executive more than any other: Sirgoo Lee. When he announced in 2025 that he would step down as CEO, it raised an unusual question for the crypto industry, in South Korea and beyond. Could the world’s most hyperactive retail crypto market operate the same way without the leader who defined its structure and risk culture, or would his exit shift liquidity balances in a country that had become crucial to global price formation? Part of Lee’s impact came from a management style that stood out in a notoriously hierarchical corporate environment. Inside Dunamu, the parent company of Upbit, he was known for a horizontal approach that encouraged open communication and pushed responsibility downward — a management style common in Western startups but unusual in conservative, strict Korea. At Upbit, that approach shaped how the company handled user risk. Under his leadership, the exchange built systems that recovered more than 94% of misdirected deposits , established an Investor Protection Center that offers education and legal support, and expanded its compliance and security programs through industry certifications. In a market where risk-embracing 'degenerate' trading is a point of personal pride, these measures helped Upbit distinguish itself as the venue South Korean investors considered safest. Upbit’s dominance did not fade as Lee prepared to exit. Its listings still drive significant volume to flavor-of-the-day memecoins, and traffic continues to grow. Korea’s retail traders will not slow down, and, thanks to Lee, Upbit remains the venue that amplifies their instincts. Upbit South Korea CoinDesk Most Influential 2025 More For You Protocol Research: GoPlus Security By CoinDesk Research Nov 14, 2025 Commissioned by GoPlus What to know : As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M. GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month. Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B. View Full Report More For You Most Influential: The Social Media Traders By Shaurya Malwa | Edited by Cheyenne Ligon 2 minutes ago Crypto Twitter’s social media traders turned their X dashboards into public PnL reality shows in 2025, sending billions in volume through memecoins and perp DEXs in real time. Read full story Latest Crypto News Most Influential: The Social Media Traders 2 minutes ago Coinbase Taps Chainlink CCIP as Sole Bridge for $7B in Wrapped Tokens Across Chains 2 minutes ago Most Influential: Shayne Coplan 2 minutes ago Most Influential: Arthur Hayes 2 minutes ago Most Influential: Cathie Wood 2 minutes ago Crypto Trading Volumes Deteriorated Across Board Last Month as Market Slumped: JPMorgan 25 minutes ago Top Stories $500M Flows MIA for Month: Crypto Daybook Americas 2 hours ago BTC, Nasdaq Futures Drop as Oracle Earnings Revive AI Bubble Fears 4 hours ago U.S. Senate's Crypto Market Structure Bill Gets Messy as Calendar Weighs Down 11 hours ago Gemini Approved by CFTC to Offer U.S. Prediction Markets, Stock Surges Nearly 14% 7 hours ago Revolut and Trust Wallet Launch Instant Crypto Buys in EU With Self-Custody Focus 3 hours ago Bitcoin Swings Wildly as Fed's Powell Straddles Labor Market and Inflation Issues 18 hours ago