Original | Odaily Planet Daily (@OdailyChina)
Author｜Nan Zhi (@Assassin_Malvo)
Around 21:50 tonight, South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol suddenly made a live television speech and announced the implementation of "emergency martial law". Yoon Seok-yeol listed a number of reasons, saying that the opposition party was coercing the National Assembly and disrupting the country, and that he would purge "anti-national forces" in South Korea. The specific martial law measures are still unknown.
South Korean exchanges plunged across the board, while safe-haven assets rose
After the news was announced, tokens on South Korean exchanges plummeted and experienced serious negative premiums. The Bitcoin-Korean won trading pair on Upbit dropped below 90 million won (about 63,300 US dollars). Upbit's trading was subsequently interrupted due to increased traffic. As of the time of writing, the price of Bitcoin has rebounded to around 128 million won (about 90,000 US dollars).
In addition to cryptocurrencies, various types of assets were also affected. The Korean won fell by about 1% against the US dollar, hitting a two-year low, while classic safe-haven assets such as gold and the Japanese yen rose accordingly.
However, this news has not had a significant impact on the crypto market outside of Korea. The market shows that within 15 minutes after the news was announced, Bitcoin fell by about 0.8% in a short period of time, and then rebounded by 1.0%, with a cumulative increase of 0.2%. The only sector with a significant decline was the Korean concept currency sector, such as ICX and AERGO, which fell by more than 8%, and only LUNC rose by 3% against the trend.
What is the trend of martial law?
According to Jinshi, the recent series of legislation promoted by South Korea's opposition parties targeting the president's wife and impeachment of public officials such as prosecutors may be the fuse for Yoon Seok-yeol's declaration of "emergency martial law."
CCTV reported that clashes had occurred in front of the South Korean National Assembly, with people trying to enter the National Assembly confronting the police. Shortly afterwards, South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol appointed a martial law commander.
At 22:49, the South Korean Martial Law Command issued the Martial Law Order No. 1, announcing that the following matters will be announced throughout South Korea from 23:00 on December 3, 2024:
1. All political activities such as the activities of the National Assembly and local councils, political parties, political associations, rallies, demonstrations, etc. are prohibited. 2. All acts that deny the liberal democratic system or attempt to overthrow it are prohibited. Fake news, fabricated public opinion, and false incitement are prohibited. 3. All speech and publication are controlled by the Martial Law Command. 4. Strikes, slowdowns, and rallies that cause social unrest are prohibited. 5. All medical personnel, including interns and residents, who are on strike or leaving their posts must return to their jobs within 48 hours. If they violate the rules, they will be punished according to the Martial Law Act. 6. Except for anti-state forces and other system-subversive forces, ordinary citizens will minimize the inconvenience of their daily lives. Those who violate the above martial law orders may be arrested, detained, seized and searched without an arrest warrant in accordance with Article 9 of the Martial Law Act of the Republic of Korea (Special Measures Power of the Martial Law Commander), and punished in accordance with Article 14 of the Martial Law Act.
Exchange Trends
Despite the short-term plug-in and "network unplugging", Upbit's trading and negative premium have gradually returned to normal. According to Jinshi, South Korea's stock exchange said trading will resume normal on Wednesday.
However, we do not know whether this political incident will further ferment and whether Hanso will suffer another shock. However, the short-term spike in the market also made arbitrage users who have Hanso KYC profitable. Don’t miss every big pullback in the bull market.
