Bybit, the world’s second-largest crypto exchange by trading volume, plans to enter the U.S. through a brokerage partnership rather than building its own license from scratch, CEO Ben Zhou said.
Why Bybit Wants a Broker Partner Instead of Going Solo
Zhou told CoinDesk that Bybit’s standard approach in new markets is teaming up with a local partner who already has a customer base but hasn’t entered crypto yet.
He pointed to Interactive Brokers (NASDAQ:IBKR) as an example of the kind of firm Bybit could work with in the United States.
“It’s best at this stage to work with a partner who wants to enter the crypto field and who already has a client base in the U.S.,” he said.
That strategy skips the state-by-state licensing path Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) took to build its US presence, a process Zhou estimated takes two to three years.
He’d rather wait for the Clarity Act to pass, or for the SEC to take over crypto oversight entirely, simplifying the current patchwork into a single federal license.
Zhou also framed Bybit’s absence from the U.S. as an edge rather than a setback. “Bybit is the only one that’s been sitting out of the U.S., and as a result we have a completely clear record there,” he said, adding that Bybit would rather wait for the right entry point than rush in out of fear of missing out.
Moreover, he acknowledged the U.S. remains fiercely competitive, citing Coinbase’s established footprint and Robinhood’s (NASDAQ:HOOD) growing reach as challenges Bybit will need to navigate.
Benzinga reached out to Bybit for comment on whether the company has started talks with any specific U.S. brokerage partners and what products it would prioritize at launch, but had not received a response by publication time.
Where Bybit Sees Its Next Opportunity
Zhou pointed to the United Kingdom as a market with less concentrated competition than regions like Southeast Asia, Latin America or Africa.
“The U.K. is looking towards a new regime for crypto, and none of the global exchanges are dominant there,” he said, noting Coinbase currently holds the strongest position but calling the market “very untapped” overall.
He cautioned that entering the United Kingdom would cost roughly as much as securing a MiCA license in the European Union, where Bybit already plans to launch an “everything app” offering derivatives and tokenized stocks as early as the first quarter of 2027.
Bybit currently counts more than 80 million registered users across over 180 countries and regions, giving it a global base from which to expand into new regulated markets as licensing opportunities open up.
Image: Shutterstock
Recent Comments