Bithumb's IPO Just Got the 'HODL' Treatment: Now Targeting 'After 2028' Launch

Bithumb's IPO has officially entered the longest holding period in crypto history—longer than your uncle's bags from 2017. The South Korean exchange, once eyeing a 2027 listing with stars in its eyes, has now pushed its public debut to sometime after 2028, because apparently diamond hands aren't just for retail anymore.

CFO Jeong Sang-gyun confirmed the firm signed an IPO advisory contract with Samjong KPMG, presumably because nothing says "we take your money seriously" like hiring one of the Big Four. "We are currently in the process of preparing to strengthen accounting policies and internal controls," he said, adding that Bithumb is pursuing the "industry's first listing" while conducting thorough internal verification—because rushing would be unhinged.

The delay, according to Bithumb, isn't negligence—it's a "strategic move" to "maximise corporate value" given ever-changing regulations that move slower than a congested L2. Sang-gyun specifically referenced the Framework Act on Digital Assets, expected to be approved by H2 2026, which gives us all something to look forward to besides another memecoin launch.

Some shareholders are pushing for dividend payments, citing "improvements in performance" like polite degens asking for their principal back. However, Bithumb has paid out nothing—zero, zilch, not even a thank you card. One shareholder even compared the exchange unfavorably to competitor Dunamu, which actually distributes dividends, because apparently transparency is contagious.

CEO Lee Jae-won's response? "Considering the competitive market conditions, we concentrated capital on expanding the company's market share and increasing corporate value." Translation: we see better opportunities than sharing the pie, so we're baking a bigger one. Allegedly.

This aligns with Bithumb's 12th fiscal year financial report, approved on the last day of Q1 2026 like a procrastination masterpiece. The exchange reported total assets of 3.3249 trillion won and total liabilities of 2.461 trillion won for 2025—numbers that would look great on a prospectus if anyone could actually see one.

Despite the bottlenecks, Bithumb's trading volume sat at $523,156,667 at press time—a 10.2% increase over 24 hours, because apparently people still trust them. According to CryptoQuant, outflow charts showed more Bitcoin being deposited than withdrawn, indicating rising selling pressure. However, Bitcoin's sideways price movement suggests bears