UK Invites Bybit CEO Ben Zhou To Meet FCA And House Of Lords During Fintech Week

The United Kingdom invited Bybit CEO Ben Zhou to meetings in the U.K. this week with government-linked bodies including the FCA and representatives of the House of Lords, according to CoinDesk.

“UK invites crypto giant Bybit to London to win over some of UAE’s innovation shine Bybit CEO Ben Zhou was invited to meetings in the U”

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The invitation coincides with UK Fintech Week and a Treasury plan to revamp payment systems with stablecoin and the spread of tokenization, CoinDesk reports.

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CoinDesk says the government has noted the outflow of money and companies going to the UAE and thinks the time is right to try to win them back.

Zhou told CoinDesk that the message from the U.K. is “they are very eager to invite big business to establish bases and create jobs,” and to discuss forthcoming pro-crypto regulation.

CoinDesk adds that Zhou said “We were invited specifically by some economic development board who said ‘We can get a direct line to the prime minister.’”

CoinDesk also reports that neither the Treasury nor Lucy Rigby, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, responded to requests for comment, and that the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology also did not respond.

CoinDesk further states that the FCA had not replied by press time.

CoinDesk frames the Bybit invitation as part of a broader effort to emulate momentum in the UAE, where Bybit is based and where Binance also operates.

CoinDesk says Bybit was founded by Zhou in 2018 and four years later moved its headquarters to Dubai from his native Singapore.

CoinDesk

It also reports that Bybit is ranked the second-largest crypto exchange by CoinGecko, trailing only Binance, which set up in the UAE in 2025.

CoinDesk says Zhou described the arrival of crypto giants like Bybit and Binance as a magnet that attracted smaller crypto companies to the region, and that the U.K. would like to emulate that effect.

In an interview at Paris Blockchain Week, Zhou said, “One interesting thing is there hasn't been any momentum built in the U.K.,” and added, “If you look at UAE, where there are big exchanges like Bybit or Binance, once we announced we're going to be there, smaller players followed, and that created this momentum.”

CoinDesk also links the invitation’s timing to geopolitical pressure on the UAE, stating that the UAE has suffered direct attacks from Iran during the U.S.-Israel war that started Feb. 28.

CoinDesk reports that the attacks prompted tens of thousands of residents and tourists to leave the country, and that “One in eight British residents has left,” according to the Financial Times.

Zhou told CoinDesk that the U.K. government has seen “the outflow of money and companies going to the UAE. They want to win it back. Precisely, now is good timing,” tying the outreach to the perceived shift in where companies are going.

CoinDesk reports that Zhou said he would use the meetings to discuss what the U.K. wants to do with crypto, and that the outreach is tied to an agenda to push for innovation.

“UK invites crypto giant Bybit to London to win over some of UAE’s innovation shine Bybit CEO Ben Zhou was invited to meetings in the U”

CoinDesk

Zhou told CoinDesk, “I have meetings with FCA. I have meetings with the House of Lords just to discuss what do you want to do with crypto,” and he did not name the U.K. government department that extended the invitation.

CoinDesk says the invitation was extended by economic development officials with links to the U.K. government, and that it appears to be a bid to emulate momentum in Dubai and the rest of the United Arab Emirates.

Zhou said the economic development board told him, “We can get a direct line to the prime minister.”

CoinDesk also notes that neither the Treasury nor Lucy Rigby responded to requests for comment, and that the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology did not respond either.

It adds that the FCA had not replied by press time.

The article places the outreach alongside a Treasury plan to revamp payment systems with stablecoin and the spread of tokenization, which CoinDesk says is part of the same timing window as UK Fintech Week.

CoinDesk’s “What to know” section also references a separate item about a crypto-friendly fintech planning an IPO no sooner than 2028, citing a Financial Times report.

A separate crypto-focused article claims that Donald Trump’s social media posts and statements have significantly impacted the Bitcoin price five times, citing CoinDesk within its text.

The Bitget-hosted piece says “According to CoinDesk, Trump’s social media posts and statements have significantly impacted the Bitcoin price five times,” and it lays out a timeline of five events.

CoinDesk

It states that on July 11, 2019, Trump adopted a critical stance toward Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies and tweeted: “I’m not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, they’re not money and their value is highly volatile and up in the air.”

The article claims Bitcoin experienced a “sharp 7% drop within minutes” of that announcement.

It then says that in March 2025, Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. government would begin strategically holding Bitcoin, and claims the $BTC price increased by “8% within 24 hours.”

The piece also describes October 10, 2025, when Trump announced on Truth Social that a “100% tariff would be imposed on all imports from China,” and it claims Bitcoin experienced a “drop of over 12% in approximately two hours.”

In March 2026, it says on March 3 Trump used Truth Social to accuse Wall Street banks of undermining the GENIUS Act for stablecoin regulation and delaying the passage of the CLARITY Act, and it claims Bitcoin “surged by 5% within minutes.”

Finally, it says that in April 2026, during the U.S.-Iran war, Trump announced that Iran had initiated peace talks and that the likelihood of reaching an agreement was “very high,” and it claims Bitcoin “surged by 6% in just minutes.”

Taken together, the CoinDesk and Bitget articles place UK and U.S. crypto policy conversations alongside market-moving statements tied to stablecoin regulation and broader legislative frameworks.

“Bitget App Trade smarter Open [](https://www”

Bitget

CoinDesk reports that the U.K. invitation to Bybit is linked to “forthcoming pro-crypto regulation” and to a Treasury plan to revamp payment systems with stablecoin and the spread of tokenization, with Zhou saying he would meet the FCA and the House of Lords to discuss “what do you want to do with crypto.”

@coindesk

In the Bitget article’s timeline, Trump’s March 3, 2026 post is described as accusing Wall Street banks of undermining the GENIUS Act for stablecoin regulation and delaying the passage of the CLARITY Act, and it claims Bitcoin “surged by 5% within minutes.”

The Bitget piece also ties another Trump post to stablecoin-related policy concerns by framing the GENIUS Act as stablecoin regulation, even as it reports price reactions.

CoinDesk, meanwhile, reports that the U.K. government has noted “the outflow of money and companies going to the UAE” and wants to “win it back,” with Zhou saying “Precisely, now is good timing,” suggesting a policy push to attract crypto business.

CoinDesk also notes that neither the Treasury nor Lucy Rigby responded to requests for comment and that the FCA had not replied by press time, leaving the immediate regulatory direction unresolved in the reporting.

The Bitget article, for its part, includes a disclaimer that “The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity,” and it says it is “not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.”

Even with that disclaimer, the Bitget text asserts specific percentage moves—“7%,” “8%,” “over 12%,” “5%,” and “6%”—and ties them to named dates and statements.