Bybit P2P Trading: How to Buy and Sell Crypto Directly with Other Users

TL;DR
This article is a deep dive into Bybit’s P2P trading platform. Below, you’ll discover what P2P trading is, how it works, and its main pros and cons. You’ll also learn about the main features of Bybit’s P2P platform, how a P2P transaction on Bybit works step by step, and our recommended tips to help keep you safe.

P2P trading is a call back to crypto’s more revolutionary days. No banks. No intermediaries. No BS. Just direct transactions between buyers and sellers. The real free market in motion.

Bybit, which is ranked 2nd by CoinMarketCap in terms of its spot and derivatives markets, has a thriving P2P marketplace. This marketplace brings together normal buyers and sellers from across the globe to engage in crypto transactions directly. So if you have limited payment or banking options, or if you need greater control over your trades, then it’s probably worth your time to look into Bybit’s P2P platform.

After reviewing this article, you’ll have a good understanding of what P2P is all about, how it works on Bybit, and how to best use the platform. So let’s dive in.

Want to Know More About Bybit? Then check out these articles . . .

• How to Trade with Leverage on Bybit: A Step-By-Step Tutorial
• Top 5 Bybit Features You Should Know About
• Is Bybit Safe? A Deep Dive into the Security Features and User Protections

Slow Down . . . What’s P2P Crypto Trading?

P2P stands for “peer-to-peer”. So P2P crypto trading simply means the buying and selling of crypto directly between users, without any middlemen. You can think of it like a cash transaction between regular people. But instead of cash, it’s crypto.

So unlike centralized exchanges, which use a trading engine and an order book to establish a market price for an asset, P2P trading operates by letting users post offers with their own desired terms, and then allowing others to voluntarily accept those offers.

Pros and Cons of P2P

Before we get into Bybit’s P2P specifically, we need to discuss the positives and negatives. As you’ll see, P2P isn’t for everyone, and those who do use it need to check their naiveté and carelessness at the door.

Positives

1. Full Control: You set your terms. Specifically, we’re talking price and method of payment. And only you are free to accept the terms of any posted offer.
2. Get Around Roadblocks: If you’re having trouble trading crypto due to limited banking or payments options, or any other issue, then you can many times solve these problems by using P2P instead.

Negatives

1. Premium Pricing: Before you initiate a P2P transaction, compare the pricing to the current market price on Bybit, or any other major centralized exchange. Don’t be surprised if you’re paying a premium on your P2P transaction. Of course, if you become one of Bybit’s merchant advertisers, this drawback becomes a positive.
2. Risks of Scams: You’ve got to be super careful here, because there’s plenty of scammers lurking. Later in this article, we’ll show you how to protect yourself.
3. Slower Transaction Times: Due to the underlying mechanics, P2P transactions can often take 30 minutes or more to complete. This is just part of the process, so be prepared for it.

Overview of Bybit’s P2P Platform

From either a buyer or seller’s perspective, Bybit’s P2P platform is very straightforward and easy to use. So let’s go through the main features of the platform, to get you acquainted with it. Take a look at this screenshot below.

So this is the main interface of the P2P platform. Here’s how you use it.

• Buy or Sell: Just select either, depending if you want to buy or sell a certain cryptocurrency or stablecoin.
• Choose the Asset: Currently, Bybit allows for Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT, or USDC to be traded on the P2P platform.
• Choose Your Fiat: There’s 62 different fiat currencies that you can currently use on the platform. Choose the one that you want.
• Select Your Payment Method: There’s hundreds of potential payment options. Yes, you read that correctly, hundreds. The odds are very high that you’re already using a few of these in your day-to-day transactions.

So once you’ve put in your parameters, Bybit will generate a drop-down list of merchant advertisers that match your criteria. Now you’re ready to select one, after you’ve confirmed that they’re reputable and that their offer terms are acceptable to you.

What a Bybit P2P Transaction Actually Looks Like

Let’s go through the details of what an actual Bybit P2P transaction looks like.

After you’ve input all your parameters, and you’ve selected the specific merchant advertiser that you want to transact with, you’ll be taken to a specific order page for that merchant. In the example below, we are the buyer, and we’ve selected “Ben Ben” as our merchant advertiser, who in this transaction is the seller.

On this order page, you’ll confirm the amount you want to spend. You can see above that we’re spending 100 Indian Rupees to purchase $10 USDT.

After you’ve clicked “buy / sell”, you’re taken to a transaction page. There are three steps.

1. Completing Your Payment. Here, you’ve got either a 15 or a 30 minute window to transfer the agreed amount to the merchant. In the example below, the merchant is accepting funds via a bank transfer. So you’ve got 15 minutes to initiate a 100 rupee transfer from your bank to the merchant’s bank. The merchant will have all the information you need on this page in order for you to complete the bank transfer. After you’ve made the transfer, click “Payment Completed.”

2. Release in Progress. After you’ve clicked “Payment Completed”, you’ll be waiting for the merchant to confirm that they’ve received your payment, and then for the merchant to send to you the other side of the trade. So in the example below, you can see that we’ve successfully sent the merchant 100 rupees, and now we’re waiting on the merchant to send us our 10 USDT.

3. Transaction Completed. After a few minutes, you should receive confirmation that you’ve received your side of the trade from the merchant. In the example below, you can see that we’ve received our 10 USDT.

So once you’ve received this confirmation, head over to your Bybit funding account, and your fiat or crypto will be there. Congratulations kids. P2P is that simple.

Pro-Tips to Keep You Safe

As you can probably tell, you’re incurring more risk by making a P2P transaction, as compared to a regular trade via Bybit’s exchange. But if you follow the tips outlined below, as well as watch Bybit’s P2P video tutorial, then the odds are very high that you’ll have a smooth and successful P2P experience.

• Properly Vet Your Advertiser Merchants: Make sure you’re dealing with reputable advertiser merchants. Only transact with merchants that are “Bybit Verified” (i.e. look for the gold “V” star next to their name), that have a large number of completed orders, and that have a high completed rate percentage. The advertiser “Super fast” (below) is an example of a reputable merchant.

• Put on Your Game Face: It’s not the time to make a P2P transfer when you’re hung-over or multi-tasking with other activities. You need to be paying complete attention to what you’re doing. After you’ve started the process, you’ve only got a set amount of time to make your transfer to the merchant. And you need to follow the merchant’s instructions, and not mess up any bank or account transfer details. Also, you’ll want your wits about you just in case you’re dealing with a scammer.
• Utilize Bybit’s Appeal Service: If for some reason you do have trouble with a transaction, use Bybit’s appeal service. A Bybit P2P representative will try resolve whatever issue has come up between you and the advertiser merchant.

• Double Check the Pricing: Before you dive head-first into a transaction, compare the price of whatever you’re buying or selling with the price on Bybit’s exchange. You’re probably going to pay a premium with P2P, but you should at least know beforehand how much more you’re paying, before you initiate the transaction.

Closing Thoughts

Bybit’s P2P trading platform is a solid choice if you’re looking to trade crypto directly with other users. The wide range of fiat currencies and payment methods make it accessible to just about anyone.

While P2P offers significant benefits, it also requires that you have your wits about you. So if you’re new to P2P trading, start first with smaller transactions. This way you can get a sense of how it all works. Also, please watch Bybit’s P2P video tutorial, as there’s a few more important tips you need to know, that we were unable to cover here.

Good luck, and happy P2P trading!