Bybit Lists Unitree, Moonshot AI Pre-IPO Perpetuals

Why Is Bybit Expanding Into Pre-IPO Trading?

Bybit has expanded its pre-IPO derivatives lineup with perpetual contracts linked to Chinese robotics company Unitree and artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI, giving crypto traders price exposure to two closely watched private companies before their shares begin public trading.

The UNITREEUSDT and MOONSHOTUSDT contracts are denominated and settled in USDT and allow traders to take long or short positions without owning shares in either company. Holders receive no equity, voting rights, dividends or direct legal claim on Unitree or Moonshot.

The products instead operate like crypto perpetual futures, using reference prices, margin and funding payments to create leveraged exposure to changes in perceived private-company valuations.

Bybit said its traditional-finance perpetual lineup has expanded to more than 200 products since launching in April, covering stocks, exchange-traded funds, commodities, indices and companies that have yet to complete an IPO.

The expansion shows how crypto exchanges are moving beyond digital assets and using their 24-hour derivatives infrastructure to create markets around assets that can be difficult for retail traders to access through conventional brokers.

Why Are Unitree And Moonshot AI Attracting Traders?

Unitree is preparing for a listing on Shanghai’s technology-focused STAR Market after receiving approval from China’s securities regulator in July. The Hangzhou-based company produces four-legged and humanoid robots and has attracted attention as investor interest in robotics and artificial intelligence grows across Chinese capital markets.

Its IPO could provide an important valuation benchmark for China’s emerging humanoid robotics sector. Several companies are seeking public capital to finance research, manufacturing capacity and AI development, making Unitree’s eventual market debut closely watched by investors.

Moonshot AI offers a less certain pre-IPO story. The Beijing-based startup is known for Kimi, an AI assistant competing in China’s generative AI market, and has attracted backing from major domestic technology investors.

The company has been linked to preparations for a Hong Kong listing, but the timing and details remain uncertain. Moonshot has disputed some reports concerning its fundraising and IPO plans, leaving traders with fewer verified valuation anchors than are available for Unitree.

That difference matters because neither contract has a continuously traded public share price. Traders instead rely on private funding rounds, secondary transactions, company disclosures, reported valuations and expectations about future IPO pricing.

Investor Takeaway

Can Pre-IPO Perpetuals Improve Price Discovery?

Private markets have historically been difficult for ordinary investors to access. Late-stage funding rounds are generally dominated by venture capital funds, institutions, wealthy investors and employees holding private shares.

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A USDT-settled perpetual removes many of those access barriers by allowing crypto traders to speculate on a company through an existing exchange account. But the product does not put capital into the company or transfer private shares to the trader.

What it opens is a market for expectations about valuation.

That could produce useful information if enough independent traders participate. A liquid derivatives market can aggregate views on a company before its IPO and provide a continuously updated indication of how investors are pricing its prospects.

The weakness is that private-company information is far less complete than data available for listed businesses. Public companies publish financial statements, regulatory filings and regular results, while private startups may disclose little beyond fundraising announcements and selected operating metrics.

That creates the risk of a self-reinforcing market in which traders buy because the contract price is rising, while the contract rises because traders are buying rather than because the underlying company’s fundamentals have changed.

Leverage increases that risk. Investors who overpay for an actual equity stake can potentially wait for a company to grow into its valuation. A leveraged perpetual trader may instead face liquidation during a temporary price move.

What Does The Trend Mean For Crypto Exchanges?

Bybit is part of a wider push by crypto platforms into markets traditionally controlled by stock exchanges and private-market intermediaries. Pre-IPO derivatives gained attention around highly anticipated private-company listings, while tokenized equities have also expanded rapidly across blockchain networks.

Tokenized stocks and pre-IPO perpetuals address different markets. Tokenized equities attempt to bring exposure to existing public securities onchain, while pre-IPO contracts create derivative markets around companies whose shares are not yet freely traded.

For Unitree, the eventual IPO will provide an important test of the model. Once the company begins normal secondary-market trading, investors will be able to compare its regulated public share price with the valuations implied by earlier perpetual trading.

Large differences could expose weaknesses in private-market price discovery. A close match could strengthen the argument that crypto derivatives can provide useful valuation information before a traditional listing.

Either way, the expansion reflects growing competition among exchanges to offer more than cryptocurrencies. Stocks, commodities, indices and private companies are increasingly being packaged into stablecoin-settled products available around the clock.

For traders, the important distinction remains unchanged: a pre-IPO perpetual may provide access to a company’s expected valuation, but it does not provide ownership of the company itself.