Bybit Wants One Connection for the Fiat Side of Its 80M-User Crypto Business

Bybit already has plenty of ways to get money into crypto. The more interesting part of its latest deal with OpenPayd is how much of the machinery underneath those transactions is being collapsed into one connection.

Through a single API, OpenPayd is giving Bybit access to USD SWIFT, virtual IBANs, foreign exchange, retail fiat on/off-ramps and institutional settlement. Instead of stitching together different providers for different parts of the money-moving process, Bybit can run more of its fiat infrastructure through the same system.

For an exchange serving more than 80 million users, that is a different proposition from simply adding another deposit method.

The Other Side of Bybit’s Payments Push

The distinction becomes clearer alongside Bybit’s recent integration with Mesh.

Mesh expanded what users can do with crypto they already hold, connecting Bybit Pay to infrastructure spanning 300+ wallets and exchanges. Users can pay directly from assets sitting in their Bybit account rather than first moving them somewhere else.

OpenPayd tackles the other side of the equation: getting traditional money into Bybit, converting it, settling it and eventually getting it back out.

Put simply, Mesh helps Bybit crypto travel farther. OpenPayd is working on the banking infrastructure underneath it.

That includes customer deposits and withdrawals, but also the less visible money movements required to operate a global exchange: institutional settlements, treasury flows, currency conversion and reconciliation across jurisdictions.

One API for SWIFT, IBANs and FX

An exchange operating globally can depend on different banking and payment partners for accounts, international transfers, FX and settlement. Every additional provider introduces another system that has to be integrated, monitored and reconciled.

OpenPayd combines those functions behind one API. Bybit gets virtual IBAN infrastructure, international payment connectivity including USD SWIFT, and FX alongside the infrastructure required for fiat on/off-ramping.

There is also a tangible difference for eligible Bybit users. USD deposits through OpenPayd carry a flat $11 fee per transaction regardless of deposit size. The minimum deposit is $100 and the maximum is $1 million.

That pricing becomes much more noticeable as transfers get larger. According to Bybit’s fiat deposit information, the exchange compares the $11 flat charge with an illustrative 0.25% fee: a $100,000 deposit would cost $11 through OpenPayd versus $250 at 0.25%. At $500,000, the comparison becomes $11 versus $1,250. Banks or intermediary banks can still impose separate SWIFT charges.

It helps explain why the same infrastructure can serve someone funding a trading account and an institution moving substantially larger amounts.

OpenPayd Is Already Behind Other Major Crypto Platforms

Bybit also isn't OpenPayd's first large crypto client.

The company says its infrastructure is used by businesses including Kraken, OKX, eToro and B2C2, while the announcement says OpenPayd processes more than $300 billion in annual volume for over 1,200 businesses.

That makes the Bybit deal more about consolidation than experimentation.

“Supporting both institutional settlement and customer on/off-ramping requires accounts, global payment rails and FX to work together, rather than as fragmented functions,” said Lux Thiagarajah, Chief Commercial Officer at OpenPayd.

The important part is that the same infrastructure can support two very different customers: an individual moving dollars into a crypto account and an institution that needs much larger settlement flows handled reliably.

The Fiat Layer Is Becoming a Bigger Part of Crypto

The OpenPayd integration fits into a wider shift happening across crypto payments.

Wirex’s integration with Circle’s Arc approaches the problem from the stablecoin side. Arc is designed for fast stablecoin settlement, while Wirex is focused on connecting those digital dollars to payment infrastructure people can actually use.

OpenPayd and Bybit are coming at the same convergence from another direction. Their focus is the traditional fiat infrastructure connecting bank money with a global crypto exchange.

Stablecoins haven't made that infrastructure irrelevant. Dollars still have to enter exchanges, institutions still need settlement, customers still withdraw into bank accounts, and currencies still need converting.

“Fiat access remains a critical part of the crypto experience, and improving the connection between traditional banking and digital assets is key to broader adoption,” said Victoria Kilikyan, Bybit’s Deputy Head of Fiat.

The Infrastructure Users Aren’t Supposed to Notice

The competition between crypto platforms is increasingly moving beneath the interface.

Fast trading and deep liquidity matter, but so does what happens before someone can make a trade or after they decide to cash out. The easier those movements become, the more an exchange begins to resemble a complete financial platform rather than somewhere users visit only to trade crypto.

For Bybit, OpenPayd is an attempt to make several layers disappear at once: one connection handling accounts, SWIFT, FX, customer on/off-ramps and institutional settlement while Bybit handles the crypto side.

Users may never see most of that infrastructure. If it works properly, that's exactly the idea.