The Hong Kong financial regulator has labeled cryptocurrency exchange Bybit as a "suspicious" trading platform, even though Bybit’s local entity, Spark Fintech, applied for a crypto exchange license earlier this year.

On Thursday, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) updated its list of “suspicious virtual asset trading platforms” to include Bybit, identifying 11 of its products as suspicious. These products are Bybit Futures Contracts and Inverse Futures Contracts, Bybit Options, Bybit Leveraged Tokens, Dual Asset, Dual Asset 2.0, Bybit Shark Fin, Liquidity Mining, ETH 2.0 Liquid Staking, Bybit Web3 Staking, Bybit Lending, and Bybit Wealth Management.

The SFC stated that no entity in the Bybit group is licensed by or registered with the SFC to conduct any regulated activity in Hong Kong, expressing concern that these products might have been offered to Hong Kong investors.

A Bybit spokesperson said they could not comment on specific products or regulatory inquiries but assured that these products are not available in the Hong Kong market to meet local compliance requirements. The activities were conducted by bybit.com, operated by Bybit Fintech Limited, based in Seychelles, separate from bybit.com.hk, managed by Spark Fintech Limited in Hong Kong.

In January, Spark Fintech applied for a license with the SFC to operate as a “virtual asset trading platform.”