SKN | Bybit Adds Unitree, Moonshot AI to Pre-IPO Perpetuals Lineup

Bybit has launched USDT-denominated perpetual contracts tied to Chinese robotics company Unitree and artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI, expanding its private-market trading offering. The contracts provide price exposure to the companies without giving traders ownership of their underlying shares. Bybit said its TradFi perpetuals lineup has grown to more than 200 products since launching in April, covering equities, ETFs, commodities, indices and pre-IPO companies. The expansion comes as tokenized equities and crypto-native derivatives increase access to private and traditional financial markets.

Bybit Expands Pre-IPO Trading

Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit has added Unitree and Moonshot AI to its growing lineup of pre-IPO perpetual contracts.

The USDT-denominated and settled products allow traders to speculate on the price performance of the underlying companies without purchasing or owning their shares.

The launch expands Bybit’s push to bring traditional financial market exposure into crypto-native trading infrastructure.

Bybit said its TradFi perpetuals offering now includes more than 200 products, covering equities, ETFs, commodities, indices and private companies.

Unitree Gains Pre-IPO Market Exposure

Unitree, a Chinese robotics company, received approval from China’s securities regulator in July to proceed with an initial public offering on the Shanghai STAR Market.

Bybit’s perpetual contract provides traders with exposure to the company before its shares begin publicly trading.

The structure gives market participants a way to trade anticipated price movements without waiting for the formal listing process to be completed.

For crypto exchanges, pre-IPO perpetuals also provide a way to bring private-company exposure into an established derivatives environment.

Moonshot AI Joins the Lineup

Moonshot AI, a Chinese artificial intelligence startup, has also been added to Bybit’s pre-IPO perpetual offering.

The inclusion places an AI-focused private company alongside Unitree within Bybit’s expanding private-market product range.

The products do not represent direct ownership of either company. Instead, they provide traders with derivative exposure to their perceived market valuations.

This distinction is important because traders gain price exposure without receiving shareholder rights or ownership of the underlying businesses.

Crypto Exchanges Move Into Private Markets

Bybit’s expansion follows a broader movement among cryptocurrency exchanges toward private-market trading.

Binance, Coinbase, Kraken and other platforms have introduced products linked to private companies, including contracts connected to SpaceX before its June listing.

These products allow crypto users to obtain exposure to companies that would traditionally be accessible primarily through private investment markets or after a public listing.

The trend also demonstrates how cryptocurrency exchanges are increasingly competing with traditional financial platforms by offering exposure across a broader range of asset classes.

Tokenized Equities Gain Momentum

The expansion of pre-IPO derivatives comes alongside growing activity in tokenized equities.

Data from RWA.xyz shows that tokenized stocks have reached approximately $2.38 billion in distributed value and 1.31 million holders.

The number of holders increased 123.62% over the previous 30 days, according to the cited data.

The growth suggests increasing demand for blockchain-based representations of traditional financial assets.

While Bybit’s perpetual contracts are derivatives rather than tokenized ownership, both developments reflect the broader convergence between digital asset markets and traditional securities markets.

Crypto Derivatives Broaden Market Access

The growing availability of pre-IPO perpetuals gives traders access to market exposure that previously required participation in private markets or waiting for a company’s public listing.

For exchanges, these products can also generate additional trading activity while positioning crypto platforms as venues for increasingly diverse financial instruments.

However, perpetual contracts remain derivative products rather than direct investments in the companies they reference.

Their value is therefore tied to the underlying market exposure rather than ownership rights.

Closing Insights

Bybit’s addition of Unitree and Moonshot AI highlights the growing convergence between cryptocurrency derivatives and private-market finance. With more than 200 TradFi perpetual products now available across multiple asset classes, the exchange is expanding beyond conventional crypto trading toward a broader financial marketplace. The rise of pre-IPO derivatives alongside rapidly growing tokenized-equity markets suggests that blockchain infrastructure is increasingly being used to provide alternative forms of access to traditional and private assets, although derivative exposure remains distinct from actual ownership of the underlying companies.