Will Traders in Asia Drive Next Phase of the Bitcoin Bull Run?

Crypto market data shows that cumulative returns in the Asian session are outpacing those in the U.S. and EU. Despite this growing divergence in returns, an analyst told Decrypt the U.S. still plays a pivotal role in shaping how this cycle progresses.

Over the past year, the cumulative returns noted in the Asian session hovered around 47%, closely followed by the U.S. and EU with roughly 31% and 29%, per Velo data.

Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget, told Decrypt that this is due to “a 69% year-over-year increase in APAC trading volumes, reaching $2.36 trillion by mid-2025.” The primary reason for this uptick, he explained, is regulatory clarity in Hong Kong, boosting institutional and stablecoin adoption.

The divergence in returns between the East and the West could be due to the driver of the underlying capital, Jeffrey Ding, chief analyst at HashKey Group, told Decrypt. While institutional flows remain dominant in the U.S. and EU, he explained, “Asian markets are still more retail-driven, which naturally brings higher volatility and a stronger speculative element.”

The Kimchi premium, tracked by CryptoQuant, has remained positive over the past year, except for a few dips in late November 2024 and the first half of 2025’s third quarter. The indicator, nicknamed after a popular Korean dish, measures the premium investors are paying for crypto assets on South Korean exchanges, such as Upbit and Bithumb, compared to global exchanges, including Coinbase, Binance, and Bybit.

Referring to the “eastward liquidity shift,” Lee explained that the spike in the Kimichi premium, coupled with a drop in the U.S. vs offshore exchange reserve ratio, has cemented Asian exchanges such as Binance, Bybit, Bitget, and others.

This development, as a result, could help sustain the APAC’s cumulative returns and dominance, helping boost the second half of the ongoing bull run.

Ding, on the other hand, took a different route, noting that the Asian session is amplifying the Bitcoin bull run, which is a “product of the U.S. policy and positive expectations around liquidity,” influenced by other factors, such as global dollar liquidity, Federal Reserve decisions, and regional regulatory environments.

All of which will determine how long this cycle will last, he added.

While a surge in Asian speculative flows may temporarily prompt the U.S. and EU to step back, Ding added, it may not be enough to “alter the long-term trajectory of institutional investment.”

Bitcoin is up 0.4% in the past 24 hours and is currently trading at $113,000, attempting a recovery bounce after Monday’s liquidation cascade, according to CoinGecko data.