Bybit has led an $8 million Series A for Hata, a dual-licensed digital asset exchange operating in Malaysia, marking a notable push into Southeast Asia’s evolving crypto regulatory landscape. The round, which followed Bybit’s earlier $4.2 million seed investment, is aimed at boosting liquidity, expanding the user base, and developing additional digital asset products as Hata scales in the country.

Hata operates under licenses from Malaysia’s Securities Commission and the Labuan Financial Services Authority, enabling it to offer trading and custody services for digital assets within the Southeast Asian nation. Since launching in 2023, the platform reports more than 209,000 registered users and processed 1.04 billion Malaysian ringgits (about $225 million) in transaction volume in 2025, underscoring growing demand for compliant onshore crypto access.

Ben Zhou, Bybit’s co-founder and CEO, described Malaysia as strategically important, noting its digitally engaged population and long-term potential for asset adoption across Southeast Asia. Bybit itself sits among the world’s largest crypto exchanges by trading volume, with CoinMarketCap ranking it as the fifth-largest platform globally.

Beyond Southeast Asia, Bybit has deepened its commitment to the Middle East. In March, the firm named Derek Dai as the new country manager for the MENA region to spearhead expansion and partnerships, despite ongoing regional tensions. The executive said the Middle East is emerging as a key crypto market, with Bybit targeting expanded access to local currencies, including the UAE dirham, and closer collaboration with banks and payment providers in the coming months.

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Key takeaways

• Bybit-led $8 million Series A fuels Hata’s growth in Malaysia, with prior seed funding of $4.2 million contributing to its onshore expansion agenda.
• Hata operates under dual licensing from Malaysia’s Securities Commission and the Labuan Financial Services Authority, enabling trading and custody of digital assets in-country.
• Malaysia’s regulatory push includes a Digital Asset Innovation Hub sandbox and a broader three-year roadmap from Bank Negara Malaysia to explore asset tokenization and cross-border settlement.
• Bybit’s regional strategy extends beyond Malaysia into the Middle East, with a dedicated MENA leadership and plans to broaden local currency access and banking partnerships.

Malaysia’s regulatory sandbox as a testing ground for digital assets

The fundraising comes amid a broader regulatory push in Malaysia to create a structured framework for digital assets. In June, Malaysia unveiled the Digital Asset Innovation Hub as a regulatory sandbox, allowing fintechs and digital asset firms to pilot use cases such as programmable payments, ringgit-backed stablecoins, and supply chain financing under central bank oversight. The aim is to test and refine practical applications of tokenized finance within a controlled environment before wider market rollout.

That same month saw notable industry activity, with a Crown Prince-owned telecom company launching a ringgit-backed stablecoin called RMJDT on the Zetrix blockchain within the sandbox framework. These developments illustrate Malaysia’s intent to balance innovation with consumer protection and regulatory clarity as the sector matures.

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has signaled a longitudinal, three-year plan to explore asset tokenization, including pilots for tokenized deposits, stablecoins, and cross-border settlement via its Digital Asset Innovation Hub. The central bank has formed an industry working group co-led with the Securities Commission Malaysia to coordinate use cases and address regulatory and legal considerations as the market evolves.

What Bybit’s regional push means for investors and users

Bybit’s investment in Hata aligns with a wider pattern of exchanges pursuing onshore hubs that offer regulated access to digital assets while expanding liquidity and product depth. For investors, the Malaysia-focused funding round signals confidence in a credible regulatory pathway that could attract more institutional liquidity and user adoption as the market scales. For users, the move could translate into more competitive trading options, improved custody solutions, and a broader suite of asset offerings under compliant standards.

The Middle East leg of Bybit’s expansion strategy further broadens the firm’s geographic footprint at a time when regional crypto markets are intensifying activity despite ongoing geopolitical headwinds. With Dai at the helm in MENA, Bybit aims to broaden UAE dirham access and foster partnerships with banks and payment providers, potentially unlocking smoother onramps for retail and institutional participants alike.

Analysts familiar with the space note that the regulatory sandbox in Malaysia could become a proving ground for cross-border tokenization concepts, while Bybit’s regional expansion could accelerate the adoption cycle in the MENA region. If these efforts translate into measurable liquidity improvements and broader product offerings, they could set a precedent for other exchanges looking to operate vertically integrated, licenced platforms in emerging markets.

What to watch next

In the near term, observers should monitor how Hata leverages the fresh funding to enhance liquidity and user growth, and whether subsequent regulatory milestones in Malaysia unlock additional onshore listings and product pilots. In the Middle East, the pace of collaborations with banks and payment providers will be a key indicator of Bybit’s ability to convert strategic commitments into practical access for users and merchants. Finally, Malaysia’s regulatory sandbox activity—alongside the central bank’s tokenization roadmap—will shape the broader environment for digital assets and could influence how exchanges approach onshore operations in the region.