Who owns Bybit? Ownership, HQ and the EU licence
Bybit Fintech Limited, founded in 2018 by Ben Zhou, headquartered in Dubai. For Europe, a separate entity applies: Bybit EU GmbH, authorised by Austria's FMA since 28 May 2025.
Bybit is owned by Bybit Fintech Limited, founded in 2018 by Ben Zhou, who remains CEO. The headquarters has been in Dubai since 2022. For users in the European Economic Area, a separate, separately regulated entity applies: Bybit EU GmbH, which has held its own MiCA authorisation from the Austrian regulator since 28 May 2025.
Ben Zhou and the 2018 founding
Ben Zhou founded Bybit in 2018 and has been CEO ever since. How he steered the company through its biggest crisis to date — the February 2025 hack — is covered further down this article.
Where Bybit is based
The headquarters has been in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since 2022. Bybit already left the UK in March 2021, after the FCA banned retail crypto derivatives, and it is currently barred from operating in the United States.
The European licence: Bybit EU GmbH
For customers in the EEA, Bybit operates through a separate legal entity: Bybit EU GmbH, registered under Austrian commercial register number FN 636180i. That entity received a MiCA authorisation from Austria's Financial Market Authority (FMA) on 28 May 2025 — a crypto-asset service provider authorisation under Article 63 of the MiCA regulation. It covers custody and administration of crypto-assets on behalf of clients, exchange of crypto-assets for funds and for other crypto-assets, placing of crypto-assets, and transfer services. Through MiCA passporting, the authorisation applies across the whole EEA.
The downside worth naming: Bybit EU GmbH's authorisation doesn't cover derivatives. Anyone trading leveraged products through Bybit is doing so outside the European entity's MiCA protection — and carries a different risk profile than with ordinary spot trading.
What the February 2025 hack says about how Bybit handles trouble
On 21 February 2025, Bybit lost $1.5 billion in ether — around 70% of its ether reserves — in a hack attributed to North Korea's Lazarus Group. CEO Ben Zhou announced the same day that the company had already secured almost 80% of the stolen ether through a bridge loan, and that withdrawals continued as normal: "We don't have the plan to suspend or cancel withdrawals at the moment." Bybit pledged to fully compensate all affected users, backed by its own reserves ($20 billion in client assets at the time) or a bridge loan from partners.
Bybit then filed a civil lawsuit against North Korea and the Lazarus Group, securing a preliminary freeze on funds. By mid-August 2026, according to our earlier article on the lawsuit, $48.4 million had been recovered and $30.5 million frozen. How you judge a hack doesn't only depend on whether it happened, but on what a company does afterwards: keeping withdrawals open, compensating users, and pursuing legal recovery are concrete signals — not guarantees, but a pattern.
What you can check yourself
- Check yourself whether Bybit EU GmbH is listed in the official ESMA CASP register — don't rely blindly on a comparison site.
- Note which entity you're signing up with: Bybit Global (outside MiCA) or Bybit EU (with a MiCA authorisation). That determines which protection applies.
- The European authorisation doesn't cover derivatives — that carries a different risk than spot trading.
Want to start on Bybit EU yourself? Through our Bybit welcome offer — affiliate link, we earn a commission if you open an account through it, at no extra cost to you — a card welcome package worth up to €120 applies.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Bybit? Bybit is owned by Bybit Fintech Limited, founded in 2018 by Ben Zhou, who remains CEO.
Where is Bybit headquartered? In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since 2022.
Does Bybit hold a licence in Europe? Yes. Bybit EU GmbH received a MiCA authorisation from Austria's FMA on 28 May 2025, valid across the EEA through passporting — but not for derivatives.
Is Bybit safe after the $1.5 billion hack in 2025? Bybit kept withdrawals open during the hack, used a bridge loan to cover roughly 80% of the stolen amount immediately, and pledged full compensation. That's no guarantee for the future, but it shows how the company responded to an incident.
This article is informational, not financial advice. Crypto carries price risk; never invest more than you can afford to lose.
Sources
Last checked on 13 September 2026: