Bybit Added to Singapore MAS Investor Alert List

The Alert and Its Purpose

Bybit Fintech Limited and Bybit appeared on the MAS alert list on Wednesday, though the MAS did not provide a specific reason for their inclusion. The Investor Alert List identifies entities and investment offers that may create the false impression of being licensed, authorized, regulated or registered by the authority.

Based on publicly available information, Bybit is not licensed or regulated by MAS. In fact, the exchange does not operate in the city-state and lists Singapore among its Service Restricted Countries, meaning users in Singapore are not permitted to access Bybit's services.

Bybit was founded by Singaporean entrepreneur Ben Zhou. Despite its Singapore roots, the platform operates globally from other jurisdictions.

Tightening Enforcement in Singapore

The Bybit listing reflects a broader regulatory tightening in Singapore's crypto sector. In May, the MAS revoked the Major Payment Institution license of crypto liquidity provider Bsquared Technology after uncovering serious regulatory breaches, including weaknesses in risk management and conflict-of-interest policies. The regulator also found that Bsquared Technology had provided false or misleading information from its initial license application through a subsequent inspection.

In another high-profile case, Singapore police charged former Hodlnaut CEO Zhu Juntao in May with six counts of fraud for allegedly misleading customers about the crypto lender's exposure to the Terra ecosystem collapse. Hodlnaut suspended withdrawals in August 2022 following the Terra implosion and was later ordered to liquidate.

Precedent and Context

This isn't the first major exchange to land on the alert list. The MAS placed Binance.com on its Investor Alert List in 2021. However, a search on Wednesday of the list did not show any mention of Binance among 910 records in the query, suggesting the entry may have been removed.

Despite enforcement actions, Singapore has cemented its position as a leading crypto hub, ranking among the world's top jurisdictions for decentralized finance and institutional digital asset services according to Chainalysis' 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index. Retail crypto adoption, however, ranked significantly lower than institutional adoption in the city-state.