Crypto Exchange Bybit Barred From Brokering Securities in Brazil

This article is adapted from CoinDesk Brasil, a partnership between CoinDesk and InfoMoney, one of Brazil's leading financial news publications. Follow CoinDesk Brasil on Twitter.

The Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) banned the Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit from brokering securities.

In a declaratory act published on Monday, the CVM ordered the suspension of “the public offering of any securities intermediation services, directly or indirectly, including through the use of websites, applications or social networks” by Bybit to Brazilians.

According to the CVM, Bybit was “seeking to raise funds from investors residing in Brazil for investments in securities,” without the company having authorization to act as a securities intermediary. In Brazil, only Brazil’s stock exchange B3 can offer securities.

Bybit did not respond to a request for comment.

The CVM added that Bybit must comply with the ban immediately or else the commission will impose a daily fine of 1,000 Brazilian reals (equivalent to US$194).

In April, Bybit announced that it allowed Brazilian users to acquire cryptocurrencies using Brazilian reals and the launch of earning products and a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace.

In June, Bybit told CoinDesk InfoMoney that it was closely following the crypto regulatory debate in Brazil, in order to take the best possible approach and not repeat the case of Binance, which was suspended by the CVM in 2020.

Read more: Brazilian Congress Postpones Crypto Bill Vote Until After October Presidential Elections

This article was translated by Andrés Engler, and edited by CoinDesk. The original Portuguese can be found here.