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Key Takeaways
- Upbit will end BONK’s KRW and USDT trading pairs on September 7, citing an unresolved security incident and delayed disclosure by the token’s operators
- The delisting follows a month-long cautionary review launched after BONK DAO confirmed a $20 million governance-exploit attack on its treasury on July 7
- BONK has fallen 30.5% over the past month, underperforming peers Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, with holders given until October 7 to withdraw funds
South Korean exchange Upbit will delist the Bonk (BONK) meme coin on September 7, ending its Korean won and USDT trading pairs. The announcement pushed BONK to its lowest price since November 2023.
The token fell to an intraday low of $0.00000255 following the news, before trading near $0.00000264, down nearly 7% on the day. The decline caps a month in which BONK missed a broader rally that lifted most major crypto assets.
Exchange Points to Unresolved Security Incident and Disclosure Failures
Upbit said it will end support for the BONK/KRW and BONK/USDT pairs at 15:00 Korea Standard Time on September 7, with all open orders on both pairs canceled once trading stops. The exchange said its review found multiple unresolved concerns that led it to conclude the token no longer meets its listing standards.
Upbit cited a security incident affecting the token whose cause remains unidentified or unremedied, along with what it described as a failure by the token’s operators to disclose material information in a timely manner.
The exchange said in its notice that the grounds for an earlier cautionary designation had not been resolved, leading it to terminate trading support under its asset review policy.
Delisting Follows a Month-Long Review Triggered by a $20 Million Treasury Attack
Friday’s announcement follows a review process Upbit began on July 7, when it designated BONK a cautionary trading asset. That designation came after BONK DAO confirmed a $20 million attack on its treasury tied to a governance exploit.
Upbit said the month-long review period was used to assess whether the underlying issues had been resolved. The exchange said they had not been addressed to a standard that would allow continued trading support.
BONK Has Underperformed Peers Since the Treasury Attack
The security fallout has weighed on BONK’s price performance well beyond Friday’s decline. The token fell 30.5% over the past month, a steeper drop than sector peers Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, which posted single-digit percentage declines over the same period.
That gap has made BONK one of the worst-performing large-cap meme coins over the past month, according to token performance data. The underperformance predates Friday’s announcement, occurring in the weeks following the treasury exploit and BONK DAO’s disclosure of the attack.
Delisting Removes Access to a Major Retail Liquidity Pool
The move cuts BONK off from one of South Korea’s deepest retail trading pools. Upbit is the country’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, and its decision to delist a token often influences whether other Korean exchanges take similar action in the following weeks.
Whether additional South Korean platforms move to restrict or end support for BONK remains to be seen. Such a move would compound the loss of liquidity available to the token.
Holders Have Until October to Withdraw Funds
Upbit said BONK holders can withdraw their tokens for 30 days after trading ends, with the withdrawal window closing October 7. Deposits made after the delisting takes effect will not be credited to user accounts, the exchange said.
Upbit added that mistaken transfers made after the withdrawal window closes may take an extended period to recover, and that it will not support any future airdrops, wallet upgrades, or hard forks involving the token. The exchange encouraged affected users to complete withdrawals well before the October deadline to avoid complications.
