By
Steve Muchoki
April 24th, 2024
The addition of a fiat gateway helps Bybit to join the elite league of derivatives exchanges that carry a fiat connection.
The next Bitcoin bull run will be driven by the derivatives market. Unlike the rally of 2017, when futures options were few, today’s traders have an army of derivatives exchanges to choose from – and they’re routinely where bitcoin’s major price movements play out. Crypto exchange Bybit stepped up to the big league of derivatives players this week with the introduction of a fiat gateway. The move pays the way for Bybit to increase its market share as demand for derivatives grows.
Bybit’s Good Year Keeps on Giving
2020 has been kind to Bybit, the Singapore-headquartered derivatives exchange which sprang to life two years ago. A string of new products and features, coupled with enhancement of its trading engine, has helped Bybit evolve into a stalwart of the derivatives game, attracting retail traders seeking to leverage BTC and ETH. Both of these cryptocurrencies can now be purchased with debit or credit card by Bybit users after the exchange sealed a deal with Banxa and Xanpool to integrate a fiat gateway.
Most cryptocurrency exchanges start out with no fiat rails attached, adding them as demand and circumstances permit. Platforms such as Bittrex, Binance, and Kucoin have all followed this model, eventually adding fiat-crypto support after reaching critical mass. Bybit’s decision to follow suit is in indication of how far the exchange, under the leadership of CEO Ben Zhou, has come. With hundreds of thousands of users and billions of dollars of weekly volume, Bybit has made a name for itself despite lacking fiat facilities up until now.
“Adding fiat-crypto support is another major milestone in our roadmap, and a major coup for Bybit traders who have been patiently waiting for this day to arrive,” enthused Ben Zhou, who promised “some of the most competitive rates on the market” for users seeking to swap into crypto.
Mutual Insurance and Perpetual Contracts
When the crypto market turned red in March, as the economic effects of coronavirus kicked in, Bybit emerged from the volatility unscathed. While BitMEX was licking its wounds, having gone offline just as the market was unwinding, Bybit’s trading engine kept ticking over. CEO Ben Zhou praised its ability to remain operational during peak demand, quoting the exchange’s impressive 99.9% uptime since launch.
In May, Bybit introduced a mutual insurance fund to help traders with risk management, giving them the ability to purchase long protection to hedge against potential downside risk, and vice-versa. Two months earlier, it rolled out USDT perpetual contracts that came with lower margin requirements and gave traders the ability to hedge positions, by simultaneously longing and shorting. The addition of a fiat gateway, connecting the platform to the broader financial world, however, is Bybit’s biggest achievement this year. In doing so, it joins the elite league of derivatives exchanges that carry a fiat connection.