Bybit Dives into Stock Trading with Crypto, Not Cash
The exchange added 78 global stocks to its platform amid growing trend of crypto-meets-Wall Street convergence.
Dubai-based crypto exchange Bybit just made a leap into traditional finance, launching stock trading for 78 global companies without requiring a single dollar, euro, or pound in fiat currency.
Instead, traders will use USDT, the dominant stablecoin issued by Tether, to speculate on companies like Tesla, Apple, and Coinbase.
There’s a catch: You won't actually own any shares through this service.
Bybit's offering uses Contracts for Difference (CFDs): financial instruments that pay traders based on price movements without transferring any actual ownership.
It's like betting on a horse race without buying the horse.
The exchange has set trading fees at 0.04 USDT per share with a 5 USDT minimum per trade. Early adopters get a sweetener: 50% off on those fees until June 15.
Bybit is pushing forward with this expansion just months after reportedly suffering a devastating $1.4 billion cold wallet breach in February. The company's CEO Ben Zhou insisted user funds remained safe, but the incident left many questioning the exchange's security practices.
What's driving this crypto-to-stocks convergence?
Last month, Kraken unveiled its own stock trading service while pursuing a $1.5 billion acquisition of futures platform NinjaTrader. Crypto.com entered the arena through a partnership with SEC-regulated broker Foris Capital.
It's not just crypto native platforms making these moves.
Traditional finance is meeting them halfway
Robinhood began with stocks but now offers crypto
eToro expanded from traditional assets to include digital currencies
Public.com added crypto trading to its social investing platform
Bybit will provide automatic "dividend adjustments" to traders holding stock CFDs during ex-dividend events.
These adjustments mirror the payouts that actual shareholders receive, creating the illusion of ownership benefits without the voting rights or other privileges that come with being a shareholder.
"This structure supports fair pricing and mirrors traditional market conditions without physical share ownership," Bybit claims in its announcement.
By enabling traders to move seamlessly between crypto and stock exposure without converting to fiat currencies, Bybit is removing a key friction point that has kept many traders in separate ecosystems.
The stablecoin-based approach means traders don't face exposure to dollar volatility, but it also means they're adding Tether risk to their portfolio — a trade-off that sophisticated investors will need to weigh carefully.
For traders seeking the path of least resistance between asset classes, these all-in-one platforms offer compelling convenience. But that convenience comes with counterparty risks that might only become apparent during the next market crisis — exactly when you'd least want them to appear.