Bybit Teams Up With Komainu to Let Institutions Trade While Keeping Assets in Custody
What happened: a custody-focused model finally goes mainstream
has joined the Komainu Connect network, giving institutional traders something they’ve been asking for since the 2022 market breakdown: the ability to trade around the clock without parking their assets directly on an platform. Komainu, which already operates as a regulated custodian with backing from Laser Digital and Blockstream, now links its custody layer directly to Bybit’s order books.
The arrangement isn’t complicated in theory but has been hard for platforms to deliver. Assets stay in segregated, bankruptcy-remote wallets held by Komainu, while mirrored balances allow trading on Bybit without pre-funding. The system settles trades automatically in the background. The idea is to give institutions quick execution without exposing their capital to unnecessary platform risk.
“Institutions want to act rapidly, but they aren’t willing to compromise on security anymore,” said Paul Frost Smith, Komainu’s Co-CEO. “Komainu Connect finally lets them do both.”
Investor Takeaway
Why this matters: trust still drives institutional behavior
Even as crypto volumes recover, institutions are still cautious about where and how they hold assets. The blow-ups of the past few years reshaped their internal policies, and most major desks now insist on third-party custody instead of letting platforms hold balances directly.
This is where Komainu fits in. It acts as a neutral party between traders and the venues they use, handling custody, segregation, and legal protections. Bybit’s integration means institutions don’t have to choose between liquidity and securety — they get both, which hasn’t always been the case in crypto.
Komainu Connect already works with lenders, brokers, and other platforms, so Bybit’s addition broadens the network. The more venues that plug into the system, the simpler it becomes for institutions to maintain a single custody setup while accessing multiple markets.
What the integration actually gives traders
The partnership comes with a few practical features that matter more than the marketing headlines:
- Assets remain off-platform in individual segregated wallets.
- Trading works as if the funds were on , thanks to balance mirroring.
- No need to pre-fund the platform before taking a position.
- Clear transparency: everything is on-chain and tied to a regulated custodian.
- Support for multiple institutional-grade assets with more coming.
For a trading desk, this means fewer operational hurdles and less back-and-forth between custody and execution teams. It also reduces settlement errors — a common pain point for large firms trying to reconcile activity across custodians, platforms, and internal ledgers.
“Our clients want security without losing the ability to move quick,” said Yoyee Wang, Head of Bybit’s B2B unit. “This partnership gives them that balance.”
Investor Takeaway
What’s next: more platforms, more counterparties, and a cleaner workflow
Komainu has been steadily expanding Connect to cover more trading venues and market counterparties. The goal is to give institutions a simple bridge between custody and liquidity instead of a patchwork of independent systems. joining the network strengthens that ecosystem and adds a high-volume platform with global reach.
For institutions, the immediate benefit is operational: quicker access to liquidity, simpler compliance checks, and reduced exposure to platform failures. For Bybit, it’s another step in its institutional push — pairing a large liquidity pool with a fully segregated custody option makes the platform more competitive for regulated firms.
With more integrations expected, both companies are placing themselves at the center of a shift toward custody-driven trading workflows. It’s a direction that feels inevitable for the institutional market, and this partnership brings it one step closer.
