Why is Espresso (ESP) Up Over 120% Today?

The price of Espresso (ESP) exploded more than 120% in 24 hours after major South Korean exchanges moved to list the token. What started as listing speculation quickly turned into a full-blown buying frenzy once Upbit confirmed support.

Shortly after Upbit made its announcement, Bithumb followed suits with its own listing on X (formerly known as Twitter)

That one-two punch sent ESP into a vertical rally. The token surged to a fresh all-time high, with 24-hour trading volume ballooning to $374.46 million, according to data from CoinGecko.

This was not casual buying. Traders rushed in aggressively, reacting to the increased access and liquidity that come with top-tier exchange listings in South Korea.

Upbit Listing News Ignites ESP Demand

The listing news did not land on a quiet project. Before the surge, Espresso already showed steady on-chain growth.

Notably, before Upbit listing announcement, the token activity steadily surged throughout the week. Daily active addresses rose to 2,019, signaling real usage rather than empty speculation.

Espresso positions itself as infrastructure for rollups. In simple terms, rollups no longer need to rely on a single centralized sequencer. Instead, Espresso offers shared sequencing services that improve decentralization. That utility sits at the core of the ESP token.

Additionally, governance also plays a role, ESP holders operate the project’s DAO. Validators must lock up ESP tokens to secure the network through staking. Rollups then pay fees in ESP for sequencing services, that creates a direct link between network usage and token demand.

When active addresses and development activity rise, demand pressure tends to follow. Add a major exchange listing to that setup, and the effect multiplies.

Nonetheless, the Upbit and Bithumb listings gave traders easier access to ESP, improved liquidity, and sharpened price discovery. Developers who need ESP for operational reasons now have deeper markets to source tokens.

Utility Narrative Meets Speculation Frenzy

Spot trading was only part of the story. Derivatives traders stepped in aggressively. Futures trading volume jumped 687% to $1.98 billion. Open interest climbed 177% to $86.44 million. The long-short ratio stood at 1.0665, slightly favoring bullish positions.

Moreover, liquidation data shows how intense the move became. Short sellers lost $8.68 million in the past 24 hours, while long liquidations totaled just $1.39 million. That imbalance signals a classic short squeeze. As the price climbed, short positions got forced to close, which pushed the price even higher.

On the 4-hour chart, ESP rocketed from $0.0933 to a peak of $0.2200 in a compressed time window. That kind of move rarely happens without strong catalysts. The exchange listings provided the spark, and leveraged traders poured fuel on the fire.

Notably, after hitting its high, the token cooled to around $0.1933. Profit-taking followed, which is normal after a triple-digit rally. Momentum traders locked in gains, while longer-term holders now watch to see whether the utility narrative can sustain the rally.

For now, the answer to why ESP surged over 120% is clear: strong fundamentals met major exchange exposure, and speculative capital rushed in fast.

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