Bitcoin rises 2.4% after South Korea lifts martial law

The cryptocurrency market rebounded as South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol reversed his martial law declaration less than six hours after it was imposed.

The decision was announced at a Cabinet meeting around 4:30 a.m. local time after 190 lawmakers in the 300-member parliament voted to reject the order.

“I will accept National Assembly’s request and lift it,” Yoon stated, according to The Washington Post.

The martial law declaration, which Yoon said was a response to perceived “threats posed by North Korea’s communist forces” and to “eliminate anti-state elements,” triggered international concern.

The White House expressed alarm over the situation, saying it was “seriously concerned about the developments we are seeing on the ground in the R.O.K.”

Following the reversal, Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) prices recovered by 2.4%, Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) rose by 3.3%, and XRP gained 9.2%, according to CoinMarketCap.

These price movements indicate some stabilisation after the initial market dip caused by the emergency declaration.

“We are relieved President Yoon has reversed course on his concerning declaration of martial law and respected the ROK National Assembly’s vote to end it,” a White House spokesperson welcomed Yoon’s decision to reverse martial law.

On Dec. 2, South Korea saw its retail crypto trading volumes reach the year’s second-highest level, driven by high-interest altcoins.

XRP recorded over $6.3 billion in trading volume, followed by Dogecoin (CRYPTO:DOGE) with $1.6 billion and Stellar (CRYPTO:XLM) with $1.3 billion.

Ethereum Name Service (CRYPTO:ENS) and Hedera (CRYPTO:HBAR) also showed significant activity, with $900 million and $800 million in volume, respectively.

The lifting of martial law and subsequent market stabilisation have eased tensions in both the crypto and broader financial markets.

At the time of reporting, the Bitcoin price was $95,668.55.