[What Must Change Before XO Can Launch in Korea] @xomarket launched the Pulse PnL Panache (PPP) event on October 20, where participants trade whether BTC will rise or fall within five minutes, competing for rankings based on profit and loss (PnL). A total of 3,000 USDC and 30,000 CP will be distributed among the top 10 participants. To qualify for ranking, users must meet a minimum trade size of 5 USDC per trade and a cumulative trading volume of 100 USDC after registration. The event is scheduled to end on November 3. However, even if Korean users meet these participation conditions, their trading activities are not automatically legal. In August, access to Polymarket was blocked in Korea, and in September, 26 domestic users were investigated for alleged gambling, with 18 referred to prosecutors. Although no convictions have been finalized yet, it has become clear that permitting access to overseas services does not equate to legal authorization under Korean law. Before XO can enter the Korean market, it must first determine which types of contracts can legally be permitted—not merely whether access from Korea is technically allowed. PPP’s BTC 5-Minute Up/Down contract settles based on the price of a cryptocurrency asset. In contrast, contracts wagering on elections or sports outcomes differ fundamentally in the nature of their underlying events. A 2026 study on Korean commercial law also concluded that contracts based on political or sports events are difficult to classify as derivatives under the Capital Markets Act. BTC price-based contracts require separate legal review regarding their underlying asset, transaction structure, and settlement mechanism. Simply using a price as an indicator does not automatically make a contract a lawful financial instrument. Following this distinction, actual pathways for legalization must be established: It must be determined whether such products can be lawfully treated under current regulations, who is authorized to offer them under what licensing framework, and how they avoid conflict with laws prohibiting gambling or speculative activities—supported by official regulatory assessments and legal grounds. If existing regulations cannot accommodate such contracts, separate legislative discussions may be necessary. Being designated under a financial regulatory sandbox does not automatically exempt a product from criminal liability under gambling laws. Finally, product design must be considered: Until legal foundations are secured, restrictions should be applied individually to Korean users’ USDC trading, event participation, and cash-based rewards. Meanwhile, non-monetary features—such as market data access or analysis of settlement rules—could potentially be offered separately. XO’s terms of service already prohibit use by users in jurisdictions where activities are illegal under local law. Here lies a key variable determining XO’s future competitiveness: The ability to apply differentiated access permissions based on country, contract type, and user behavior may be as critical as the capacity to launch more prediction markets. Even if a legal pathway opens for BTC price-based products, it does not mean all political or sports prediction markets and reward-based contests will be permitted simultaneously. The real launch for Korean users will occur only when the scope of permissible contracts, the legal qualifications of operators, and the specific domestic conditions for trading, settlement, and rewards are publicly disclosed and actually implemented. #PredictionMarkets