Bybit will stop withdrawal and custody services for French users starting January 8, 2025, amid increasing regulatory scrutiny in France.
Bybit, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has announced it will cease providing withdrawal and custody services to users in France starting January 8, 2025. This decision follows increased scrutiny from French financial regulators. Bybit reiterated it will fully adhere to all the laws and regulations in the applicable jurisdictions. However, because of the current changes in French regulation, it will be impossible for the exchange to provide such services to French citizens or residents.
The exchange has called on all the affected users to withdraw their funds before the end of September. The remaining users with balances below 10 USDC of tokens in their wallets will be charged a 10 USDC termination fee, debited from their balance. Once the fee is charged, their accounts shall be shut down permanently. For users with over 10 USDC, Bybit will wire their money to Coinhouse, a regulated crypto-asset trading platform in France. This transfer will take place after converting the assets to USDC.
Bybit to Suspend Services in France, Starts Asset Transfer to Coinhouse in 2025
The transfer of assets to Coinhouse will start on 8 January 2025 and end on 16 January 2025. In this period, no withdrawals will be allowed. Users with Coinhouse account that aligns with their Bybit account identity will have their funds credited on and after January 16, 2025. However, users who have not registered with Coinhouse must create an account and complete the KYC process. Once verified, they will be able to access their funds without issue.
When making the transfer from Bybit to USDC, there will be no conversion fees. Moreover, there will be no additional charges when transferring to Coinhouse as well. However, for the services of custodying the coins, Coinhouse will charge a monthly fee of 0.16% of the total value of the assets or 1 USDC whichever is higher. This fee is applicable only on those accounts that have not been verified for KYC. After the verification has been processed by the users, the custody fee will not be imposed again.
Recently, in celebration of its sixth anniversary, Bybit brought out the Super6Bybit campaign. The best part of the campaign is a prize pool of $1.2 million. This step helps to demonstrate the company’s progress and its growing family.
To clear up any confusion, Bybit pointed out that the first custody fee will be incurred when the assets are pulled to Coinhouse. Once the transfer is complete, users with proven accounts in Coinhouse will be issued their assets. The assets will also be realized as soon as the transfer is made.
Lastly, Bybit calls on affected customers to withdraw or transfer their money before January 8, 2025. This is to avoid any inconvenience that may be occasioned by the changes. It is advised to act before the deadline is due.
