Key Takeaways:
Bybit has obtained the first-ever full Digital Asset Platform Operator License from the UAE’s Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA).The license permits Bybit to supply regulated buying and selling, brokerage, custody, and fiat conversion for each retail and institutional purchasers.The alternate plans to broaden its UAE operations with over 500 new hires and launch Web3 schooling and innovation applications in partnership with native establishments.
The UAE has taken a significant leap towards changing into a worldwide digital asset hub as Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency alternate by buying and selling quantity, turns into the primary to obtain a full Digital Asset Platform Operator License from the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA). The approval cements the nation’s management in digital finance and displays its rising regulatory sophistication.
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Bybit’s Full Licensing Marks a Turning Level for UAE Crypto Oversight
Bybit introduced the milestone on October 9, confirming that it had secured the SCA’s full authorization following its In-Precept Approval (IPA) earlier this yr. The alternate had obtained that preliminary approval in February 2025 with steerage from the Abu Dhabi Blockchain Centre, which helped it navigate the UAE’s strict regulatory framework.
This last approval makes Bybit the first alternate formally licensed below the SCA’s Digital Asset Platform Operator (VAPO) framework, a key element of the UAE’s broader technique to place itself as a compliant world hub for digital finance below Imaginative and prescient 2031.
Bybit is now capable of conduct the regulated digital asset buying and selling, brokerage, custody, and fiat conversion providers all through the UAE below the brand new license. This covers each the retail and institutional purchasers, as it’s a signal of accelerating demand for digital property in one of the vibrant monetary hubs of the Center East.
Co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou stated the achievement displays Bybit’s “unwavering dedication to constructing belief by way of compliance and transparency.” He added that the UAE’s regulatory readability offers the alternate a robust basis to scale operations responsibly.
“The UAE has emerged as a worldwide chief in digital asset regulation, and this recognition underscores the power of our safety and governance requirements,” Zhou stated.“We see regulation as the muse for sustainable progress.”
UAE’s Regulatory Management Strengthens International Crypto Confidence
From Regional Ambition to International Instance
The SCA mannequin of the UAE is taken into account top-of-the-line structured digital asset regimes on the earth. The complete authorization of Bybit is an indicator of a alternative of native experimentation with worldwide management in compliant crypto actions.
That is the total service Digital Asset Platform Operator License, and the worldwide requirements of anti-money laundering (AML), cybersecurity, and threat administration have to be met. It additionally releases investor safety mechanisms which guarantee transparency and stability of operations.
Co-CEO of Bybit Helen Liu acknowledged that the regulatory transparency and the cooperative nature of the SCA had been key to the success of the corporate.
“The SCA’s clear and well-structured framework permits world exchanges like Bybit to function with confidence and readability,” Liu stated.“This milestone wouldn’t have been potential with out the regulator’s forward-thinking imaginative and prescient for innovation and compliance.”
The UAE’s progress contrasts with the slower and infrequently fragmented regulatory panorama in different areas. The US remains to be experiencing uncertainty within the exchanges because it nonetheless has an ongoing dispute with the Securities and Alternate Fee (SEC). As compared, the SCA within the UAE has been progressive in taking a license-first mannequin that focuses on regulation however promotes innovation.
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Bybit’s Enlargement Plans: 500 Hires and Web3 Innovation in Abu Dhabi
Bybit is increasing its native enlargement technique on the idea of the SCA license. The alternate is planning to determine a much bigger regional operations facility at Abu Dhabi that will probably be supported by greater than 500 staff in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Such main segments as compliance, operations, expertise and customer support will probably be focused below the recruitment initiative. Bybit additionally intends to launch schooling and Web3 innovation applications in collaboration with educational and institutional companions situated within the UAE in different plans.
The tasks would improve the long-term goal of the UAE to change into a blockchain and digital asset innovation hub on the worldwide degree. The applications will deal with expertise, blockchain literacy, and entrepreneurship to reinforce creation of Web3 applications.
