Hata Secures $8 Million Series A Funding Led by Bybit to Scale AI-Driven Crypto Trading

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Hata, the country's only dual-licensed digital asset exchange, successfully closed an $8 million Series A funding round led by the world's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, Bybit. This capital injection marks a significant milestone for the Malaysian fintech sector, as it welcomes several global family offices to support Hata's mission of building a secure and compliant digital wealth ecosystem. The partnership goes beyond traditional investment, establishing a deep technical collaboration to modernize trading infrastructure through advanced automated systems.

Central to this expansion is the integration of sophisticated artificial intelligence and automated tools designed to enhance market efficiency for Malaysian investors. Hata intends to deploy AI-driven liquidity management systems that minimize price slippage and ensure smoother execution of large trades. By leveraging Bybit's global technological expertise, the platform will also implement AI-powered risk assessment protocols to bolster its anti-money laundering and fraud detection capabilities, reinforcing its commitment to a safe trading environment.

Ben Zhou, the CEO of Bybit, noted that Malaysia is a strategically vital market with a highly digitally engaged population. He emphasized that Hata is the ideal partner to serve local investors because of its strict adherence to regulatory standards. The collaboration aims to accelerate the development of innovative products, including tokenized real-world assets, by combining Hata's local leadership with Bybit's global scale.

The funding follows a successful 2025 where Hata processed over RM 1 billion in transaction volume and grew its registered user base to more than 209,000 individuals. This rapid growth was fueled by the introduction of automated features like the Auto-Invest tool, which allows users to engage in dollar-cost averaging. With the new capital, Hata plans to refine these algorithmic trading features, making sophisticated investment strategies more accessible to the average retail user.

Hata's unique dual-license status under the Securities Commission Malaysia and the Labuan Financial Services Authority provides a robust foundation for this technological leap. This regulatory framework allows the exchange to act as both a marketplace and a broker, enabling it to route orders globally for better pricing. As the exchange scales, the focus remains on combining these regulatory advantages with next-generation automation to set a new standard for digital asset management in Southeast Asia. Visit hata.io to learn more.