Bybit incident postmortem: How Bybit rose from the hack and protects its RPI retail users
Key Highlights:
Security breach: On Feb 21, 2025, Bybit suffered a major security incident, losing $1.5 billion and triggering a widespread sell-off in the crypto market.
Market impact: Bitcoin’s price dropped over 20%, and Bybit's market share plummeted from 11% to 4% immediately after the hack.
Introduction of RPI Orders: Retail Price Improvement (RPI) orders, launched just before the hack, helped enhance liquidity for retail traders and stabilize trading conditions.
Recovery in trading volumes: Bybit’s market share rebounded to approximately 6–7% as trading volumes recovered, driven by improved liquidity and trader confidence.
Shift in trading behavior: Bitcoin’s trading volume share fell below 20%, while altcoins and meme tokens gained traction, reflecting changing market dynamics.
Positive outlook: Bybit’s proactive measures and its successful implementation of RPI orders position the exchange favorably for future growth in the competitive DeFi landscape.