Bybit Offers Crypto Trading to Chinese Users... But Only if They’re Not in China

Bybit is offering its services to Mainland Chinese citizens but only if they're living overseas.

The Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange updated its Service Restricted Countries section of the exchange’s Terms of Service on Friday. It stated that Chinese citizens living outside of mainland China can sign up to Bybit using their Chinese ID or passports.

China has restricted access to crypto since 2021, including a ban on Bitcoin mining, but Hong Kong has attempted to position itself as a regional hub for the industry. In April, Hong Kong approved Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs but the fanfare quickly subsided as outflows eradicated inflows.

Bybit, which recently "paused" its operations in Canada, had applied for a Virtual Asset Trading Platform (VATP) license in Hong Kong earlier this year.

However, Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has warned against a list of Bybit's products, describing the exchange as "suspicious" and "unlicensed."

Bybit then announced the "discontinuation of specific products and services" as it takes steps to "transition [its] services to provide to Hong Kong users."

The exchange will continue to block IP addresses from China but it did not state how it will regulate those using VPNs to hide their location.

Bybit is the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange after Binance with 30 million monthly visitors.