Bybit Co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou outlined the company’s expansion from a crypto exchange into "The New Financial Platform" during its biannual "Keynote with Ben" session. The update highlights significant progress in traditional finance (TradFi) integration, including the launch of stock trading for eligible users on October 12, providing access to over 1,000 U.S. stocks and ETFs via USDC. Bybit also announced plans to launch mStocks, tokenized stocks backed 1:1 by real equities, in November through a collaboration with Mantle.
Since entering TradFi with CFDs in 2022, Bybit has established itself as the largest crypto CFD platform, with peak trading volumes reaching $100 billion. Its current TradFi offering spans more than 600 products across equities, ETFs, indices, commodities, and FX, generating over $180 billion in perpetuals volume. Recent additions include IPO Express, launched in June with SpaceX, and new perpetual products linked to AI computing.
Beyond trading, Bybit expanded its payments infrastructure, connecting users with over 5,000 merchants in 15+ countries and issuing more than 4 million Bybit Cards. The company reported intercepting over 30,000 suspicious withdrawal requests in the first half of 2026, protecting users from potential losses exceeding $700 million. Additionally, Bybit secured five new licenses and regulatory approvals across the European Union, Cayman Islands, Indonesia, South Africa, and El Salvador in 2026.
Bybit’s strategic pivot toward a unified financial platform signals a broader industry trend where crypto exchanges are aggressively integrating traditional asset classes to capture mainstream market share. By launching direct stock trading and tokenized equity solutions like mStocks, Bybit is attempting to blur the lines between decentralized finance and conventional brokerage services. This approach leverages existing crypto-native liquidity and user bases to offer seamless access to global equities, potentially challenging traditional brokers that lack integrated digital asset capabilities.
From a Regulatory and Compliance perspective, the acquisition of multiple licenses across diverse jurisdictions underscores the necessity of formalizing operations to sustain this hybrid model. While the integration of AI tools and robust security measures aims to build trust, the reliance on tokenized representations of real-world assets introduces complex custody and legal risks. Market observers will watch how regulators respond to these cross-border financial instruments, particularly as Bybit expands its footprint in regions with varying degrees of crypto acceptance.
