Which Countries Does Bybit Restrict?

Bybit publishes its blocked markets on an official Service Restricted Countries page, which reflects Section 11.3 of its Service Agreement. Fourteen jurisdictions are excluded, and Bybit reserves the right to add or remove names at its discretion.

The United Kingdom and France both sat on earlier versions of this list and have since come off it, the UK through a compliant relaunch and France through Bybit's regulated European entity. Beyond the sanctioned Ukrainian territories, no European market now appears among the exclusions.

The Dubai entry looks strange for an exchange headquartered there, but it applies to the global bybit.com platform only. UAE residents are onboarded through Bybit's locally licensed operation, so the listing marks a handover between entities rather than a ban.

Why Bybit Blocks These Jurisdictions

The excluded list mixes markets Bybit cannot legally serve with territories it is legally required to refuse.

These are the main reasons a jurisdiction ends up excluded:

• International sanctions: Bybit screens users against the US Treasury's OFAC programmes along with EU, UK, UN, and UAE sanctions frameworks. Iran, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, Sudan, and the occupied Ukrainian territories of Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Sevastopol all fall under comprehensive measures that leave no room for service.
• Missing licences: The United States, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Canada each require authorisations that Bybit does not hold, from CFTC registration in America to a Major Payment Institution licence under Singapore's Payment Services Act. Rather than operate in a grey zone, the exchange refuses residents outright.
• Residency enforcement: Every account passes identity verification, and the documents submitted decide access. Users must notify Bybit if they move to an excluded jurisdiction, and the exchange can terminate accounts and liquidate open positions where residency was misrepresented.

Bybit Supported Countries

Outside the excluded list, Bybit reports users across more than 160 markets and over 80 million registered users, ranking as the second-largest exchange by trading volume.

Traffic data shows where activity concentrates. According to Similarweb, Russia generated 35.2% of visits to bybit.com in June, followed by South Korea at 10.7%, Ukraine at 7.2%, Belarus at 3.5%, and the United States at 3.1%, the last of which reflects blocked visitors reaching the website rather than the trading platform.

The strongest regional bases sit in the CIS, East Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and South Asia.

India rejoined this group in September 2025, when Bybit restored full trading access after paying a penalty of roughly $1 million imposed by the Financial Intelligence Unit-India and registering as a reporting entity under the country's anti-money laundering law.

Can I Use Bybit in the EU Under MiCA?

Yes, through Bybit EU rather than the global platform. Bybit EU is a Vienna-based entity that received crypto-asset service provider authorisation from Austria's Financial Market Authority in May 2025 under MiCA, the EU regulation that created a single licensing rulebook for crypto platforms. The authorisation passports across the European Economic Area, with Malta the one member state left out of scope.

The split became permanent when MiCA's transition period closed on 1 July. From that date, the global bybit.com platform stopped serving EEA residents, and anyone in the region who wanted to keep trading had to open a Bybit EU account or withdraw their assets. Bybit EU covers spot trading, custody, fiat conversion, and the Bybit Card, though the high-leverage derivatives that define the global product remain limited under European rules.

Binance reached the same deadline without a licence and suspended services across the EU, while Bybit EU absorbed European customers alongside the other MiCA-licensed crypto exchanges.

Is Bybit Available in the UK?

Yes, Bybit returned to the United Kingdom on 19 December 2025 after a two-year absence. The exchange left in 2023 when the FCA's financial promotions regime took effect, and re-entered through a partnership with Archax, a London firm authorised by the FCA that approves and supervises Bybit's promotions to British users. Archax has provided the same gateway for other global exchanges.

The relaunch is narrower than the global product. UK users get spot trading across 100+ pairs and peer-to-peer transactions, while derivatives stay unavailable under the FCA's ban on crypto derivatives for retail investors.

Bybit itself holds no FCA authorisation, so crypto holdings carry no FSCS compensation cover and complaints sit outside the Financial Ombudsman Service. British traders can compare the best crypto exchanges in the UK for platforms with local registration.

Can I Use Bybit in the USA?

No, the United States leads Bybit's excluded list and no American entity exists. Serving US customers legally would require CFTC registration for derivatives, a FinCEN money services business registration, and state-level money transmitter licences, none of which Bybit holds. The exchange blocks US IP addresses and rejects American identity documents at verification.

The softer enforcement climate under the current administration has drawn several offshore platforms back to the American market, but Bybit has announced no US entry plans. Residents can instead choose from the licensed platforms in our guide to the best crypto exchanges in the USA.

Bybit Licences and Regulation

Bybit has spent the past two years converting regulatory friction into authorisations, and its permission set now spans Europe, the Gulf, and Asia.

These are the principal approvals behind the platform:

• Austria and the EEA (FMA): Bybit EU GmbH holds a MiCA crypto-asset service provider licence granted in May 2025, passporting regulated services across the European Economic Area.
• United Arab Emirates (SCA): Bybit became the first exchange to secure a full Virtual Asset Platform Operator Licence from the Securities and Commodities Authority in October 2025, covering trading, brokerage, custody, and fiat conversion across the UAE mainland.
• Dubai (VARA): A provisional approval from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority marks progress towards emirate-level operational status, running alongside the federal SCA licence.
• India (FIU-IND): Bybit is registered as a reporting entity with the Financial Intelligence Unit, the registration that restored Indian access after the January 2025 enforcement action.
• Kazakhstan (AFSA): Bybit Kazakhstan operates as a licensed platform under the Astana Financial Services Authority inside the Astana International Financial Centre.
• Georgia (NBG): Bybit holds a virtual asset service provider registration with the National Bank of Georgia, an earlier step into regulated markets in the region.

Does Bybit Require KYC?

Yes, every Bybit account must complete identity verification before trading, and the checks enforce the excluded list in practice. Verification has three individual tiers.

Here is what each level requires and unlocks:

• Standard: A government-issued ID plus a face scan, which opens spot trading, derivatives, fiat deposits, and Earn products with a default daily withdrawal limit of 1 million USDT.
• Advanced: A proof of address document issued within the past three months, raising the default daily withdrawal limit to 2 million USDT and widening fiat options.
• Pro: Enhanced due diligence documentation aimed at institutional and high-transaction users, with limits set case by case.

Documents from an excluded jurisdiction stop onboarding before any funds move. Certain regions also carry additional verification steps depending on local requirements.

About Bybit

Bybit was founded in 2018 by Ben Zhou, who remains CEO, and moved its headquarters from Singapore to Dubai in 2022 as the UAE built out its crypto framework. The exchange ranks second worldwide by trading volume and lists thousands of assets across spot, derivatives, and Earn products, alongside a TradFi lineup of gold, stock, and commodity perpetual contracts.

The defining test came in February 2025, when the Lazarus Group stole roughly $1.5 billion from a cold wallet in the largest crypto theft on record. Bybit covered client balances in full from its own reserves within days, and the compliance-first licensing push that followed has reshaped its country map. Our full Bybit review covers fees, security, and features in depth.

Final Thoughts

Most exchange restriction lists grow over time. Bybit's has moved in the opposite direction, with the UK, France, and India all returning through licences or compliant structures while the hard exclusions narrow to sanctioned territories and a handful of unlicensed major markets.

The remaining blocks look durable. The United States, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Canada would each require authorisations Bybit has shown no sign of pursuing, and sanctions leave no discretion.

Anyone checking access from a specific country should treat the Service Restricted Countries page as the definitive record, and for EEA residents a Bybit EU account is now the only compliant way in.