MAS adds Bybit and Bybit Fintech to investor alert list

The Monetary Authority of Singapore added Bybit and Bybit Fintech Limited to its Investor Alert List on Wednesday. The registry warns consumers about entities that may be wrongly perceived as licensed, authorized, regulated or registered by MAS.

The regulator did not provide a reason for the listing. A MAS spokesperson declined to provide further details on the specific grounds for including Bybit.

Bybit wrote on social media that it is engaging MAS to understand the basis for the listing and that it restricts services in Singapore. The exchange stated it maintains measures designed to prevent access by Singapore users and that it has engaged openly with the regulator.

Bybit was founded by Ben Zhou. Public records and MAS registers show the company is not licensed or regulated in Singapore. Singapore appears on Bybit’s list of “Service Restricted Countries.”

The MAS Investor Alert List is one of several tools the regulator uses to warn retail investors about firms and offers that are not licensed in Singapore. The list contains hundreds of entries that identify entities whose offerings might be mistakenly viewed as approved by MAS.

In recent months MAS has increased enforcement in the crypto sector. Actions include the revocation of a Major Payment Institution licence for a crypto liquidity provider in May and criminal charges in a separate crypto lending failure.

The exchange wrote it will continue to engage with MAS and seek clarity on the reasons for the listing.