For Bybit, 2025 wasn’t a year of smooth markets or easy wins. It was a year defined by pressure—and how the exchange responded to it.
Despite a volatile market backdrop and one of the largest exchange security incidents in crypto history, Bybit ended the year stronger, larger, and more institutionally embedded than before.
Registered users grew from 50 million to over 80 million, regulatory coverage expanded across Europe, the Middle East, and the UK, and the platform maintained its position as the world’s second-largest exchange by trading volume.
Regulation First, Expansion Second
One of Bybit’s most consequential moves in 2025 was regulatory alignment.
In Europe, the exchange secured full MiCA compliance via Austria, enabling lawful operations across applicable EEA jurisdictions. In the Middle East, Bybit obtained the UAE’s first SCA Virtual Asset Platform Operator License, unlocking nationwide trading, custody, and fiat services in one of the world’s fastest-growing crypto hubs.
The UK followed. After a two-year pause, Bybit re-entered the market through a partnership with FCA-regulated Archax, restoring spot and P2P trading access while complying with strict financial promotion rules.
The pattern was clear: growth was increasingly being routed through compliance, not around it.
A Security Crisis—and a Credibility Test
February 2025 marked a defining moment. A cyberattack linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group resulted in approximately $1.4 billion in stolen ETH—one of the largest crypto breaches on record.
What followed mattered more than the breach itself.
Bybit covered 100% of client funds, restored reserves within 72 hours, and processed over 350,000 withdrawals in the first 12 hours. The response prevented wider market contagion and became a stress test of operational credibility.
Market data reinforced that trust. According to Glassnode and Kaiko, Bybit’s ETH trading volume reached a new daily ATH of $8.5 billion later in the year, while BTC liquidity rebounded to $13 million daily within 30 days—a recovery pace that exceeded industry benchmarks.
Security wasn’t treated as a patch. Bybit implemented 50+ infrastructure upgrades, completed nine audits in one month, and launched the Lazarus Bounty Program, extending security incentives beyond its own perimeter.
Spot Markets, Early Listings, and RWAs
On the trading front, Bybit leaned into early access. Its spot listing strategy prioritized assets before peak hype cycles, producing outsized early returns for users. In 2025 alone:
TRUMP rallied up to 548%
TUNA surged 2,637% on day one
MET gained 255% at launch
Bybit also pushed aggressively into real-world asset tokenization, listing assets like XAUT (+127%) and launching xStocks, enabling on-chain exposure to U.S. equities.
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User incentives followed. Spot campaigns distributed up to $40 million in rewards, translating market momentum directly into user returns.
One Interface, Many Markets
Bybit’s broader strategy was ecosystem convergence. In 2025, the platform unified crypto, onchain DeFi, and traditional markets under one interface:
Bybit Alpha surfaced on-chain tokens, liquidity farming, and trend discovery directly in-app
Byreal, a Solana-based DEX incubated by Bybit, crossed $1 billion in volume in 10 weeks
Bybit TradFi introduced gold, forex, commodities, and 100+ stock CFDs, later adding 24/5 equity trading
xStocks, launched with Backed Finance, enabled 24/7 tokenized equities settlement on Solana
Institutional adoption followed suit. Bybit Institutional inflows jumped from $1.3B in Q3 to $2.88B in Q4, while wealth management AUM expanded 5× to $200 million.
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World Series of Trading' and Community Scale
Bybit’s World Series of Trading (WSOT) 2025 underscored its global reach.
The competition set a Guinness World Record with 71,765 participants in 24 hours, generated $172.8B in trading volume, and drew over 520,000 traders across 202 regions.
Beyond competition, Bybit committed 300,000 USDT to blockchain education through the Rising Fund, supporting scholarships, hackathons, and training initiatives worldwide.
Taken together, 2025 was a year where Bybit expanded its user base, regulatory coverage, institutional adoption, and ecosystem depth—while absorbing one of the largest operational shocks in crypto without passing losses downstream.
