Bybit Review

Any honest Bybit review written in 2026 has to cover two things: a trading platform that many derivatives traders rate among the smoothest available, and the day in February 2025 when hackers drained roughly $1.4 to $1.5 billion in ether from its wallets. How Bybit responded to that theft says as much about the company as its fee table does.

A Derivatives Specialist Grows Up

Ben Zhou launched Bybit in 2018 as a perpetual futures venue, a time when competitors were still dominated by spot trading. The firm relocated from Singapore to Dubai in 2022 and has since expanded into spot, options, copy trading, savings products and a payment card. It reported passing 80 million users in 2025. On aggregator data it lists around 838 tokens across roughly 1,300 markets, placing it among the broadest catalogues of any top-five exchange.

The interface reflects those derivatives roots. Order entry, position management and risk settings sit on one screen, while a separate simplified view and one-click copy trading lower the barrier for newer users. Trading bots, structured Earn products and a launchpad for new tokens are also built into the same account, so users rarely need to leave the app.

Inside the 2027 Hack

On 21 February 2025 attackers took about 400,000 ETH from a Bybit cold wallet. Investigators traced the breach to compromised infrastructure at Safe{Wallet}, the third-party multi-signature provider Bybit used, and the FBI attributed the attack to North Korean state hackers. Bybit kept withdrawals open, borrowed and bought around 447,000 ETH with help from market makers such as Galaxy Digital, FalconX and Wintermute, and said reserves were fully restored within 72 hours. No customer was asked to absorb losses.

The episode exposed a dependency on outside wallet software, but it also showed a balance sheet large enough to absorb a billion-dollar shock. Bybit publishes proof-of-reserves data, which became an important reassurance tool in the weeks that followed.

Licences Collected Since

• European Union: Austria’s Financial Market Authority authorised Bybit EU GmbH under MiCA in May 2025, and Vienna became its European headquarters.
• Dubai: In October 2026 Bybit Fintech FZE received a VARA licence for spot services, with derivatives a stated future goal.
• Other markets: the company says it gained five further approvals in 2026, including in the Cayman Islands, Indonesia, South Africa and El Salvador.

Bybit remains closed to US residents and stopped serving UK customers in 2021 after the FCA banned retail crypto derivatives. It also paid $228 million in 2024 to settle a lawsuit from the FTX bankruptcy estate over withdrawals made before FTX failed.

What Traders Pay

At the entry VIP 0 level, spot trades cost 0.10% for makers and takers. Perpetual and dated futures cost 0.02% maker and 0.055% taker, and options run 0.02% maker and 0.03% taker. Rates fall with trading volume or account balance, and the exchange notes that some regions see different pricing. Leverage reaches 100x on major perpetuals.

Verification and limits

Standard KYC, an ID document plus a face check, is required for all products and raises daily withdrawals to 1 million USDT. Adding proof of address lifts that ceiling to 2 million USDT. Fiat access runs mainly through the P2P marketplace and card partners, with local currency choice depending on country.

Final Assessment

Bybit suits active traders who want deep perpetual markets, options and copy trading in a polished interface, and EU residents now get the same brand through a MiCA-authorised entity. The security score here sits below the platform score because of the 2025 breach, even though the recovery was handled well. Buy-and-hold investors who want a long, unblemished record may lean towards older, more conservative venues.

Leverage magnifies both gains and losses, and a fast market move can liquidate a futures position in seconds.

Bybit FAQ

Risk warning: Trading forex and CFDs on margin carries a high level of risk. Bonus terms are set by each broker and may change; always check the broker's official terms before claiming.