Bybit Pay has rolled out in Sri Lanka, bringing a new crypto payment option to shops, services and online stores across the island. The launch pairs 50 Android point-of-sale terminals in physical locations with 50 selected digital merchants, a modest but deliberate first step to weave digital-asset payments into everyday commerce.
The program is being run locally through CeyPay, the payments arm of Ceylon Cash, which means merchants won’t need deep crypto know-how to get started. Whether you run a corner café, a salon, a boutique or an e-commerce site, Bybit says the setup is “plug-and-play”: sign up, accept payments, and choose whether to settle in crypto or fiat.
There’s a practical reason for picking Sri Lanka now. Mobile penetration is high, reportedly over 130%, and people are increasingly comfortable with digital services. That combination, plus steady tourism, makes the market attractive for payment experimentation. Bybit frames the effort as a way to help local businesses meet both local customers and international visitors who prefer crypto payments.
The company pitches several tangible benefits. Transactions on the Bybit Pay network produce instant proof-of-payment through an API and promise much faster settlement than legacy systems that can take days. Bybit also highlights lower costs for cross-border receipts and built-in fraud protection and compliance tools that, it says, help raise approval rates and reduce the headaches of payment disputes. In short: faster confirmation, cheaper cross-border options and fewer disputes, the kinds of things small merchants often say they need.
“Sri Lanka’s combination of tech-forward consumers, substantial international tourism, and diverse merchant landscape creates ideal conditions for crypto payment adoption,” said Nazar Tymoshchuk, Regional Manager at Bybit. “This rollout is part of Bybit Pay’s commitment to helping make payments painless, efficient, and borderless for as many people as possible as they travel the world or build their own businesses.”
Targeting Retail and Online Merchants
Bybit Pay will publish a directory listing the 100 merchants selected during this initial rollout, and the company says it plans to expand the network beyond the first batch. Applications for digital merchant activation are open now. For merchants, the pitch is pragmatic rather than ideological.
Accepting Bybit Pay could widen a merchant’s customer base to include younger, digital-first shoppers and international visitors who might otherwise struggle with local payment rails. For travellers, it presents one more option at checkout. And for businesses that handle cross-border receipts, the company promises competitive fees that could help margins, especially for smaller enterprises.
Bybit itself has been aggressive about moving beyond exchange services into payments and Web3 infrastructure. Founded in 2018, the company bills itself as the world’s second-largest crypto exchange by trading volume and says it serves more than 70 million users. The Sri Lanka rollout fits a broader strategy to link traditional merchants with crypto-native customers, and to make on- and off-ramp pain points less painful.
How well the rollout fares will depend on a few things: how quickly merchants and consumers try the system, whether the local regulatory environment stays accommodating, and how smoothly the POS and digital integrations run in day-to-day trade. For now, the move signals growing interest from crypto firms in the plumbing of everyday payments, not just trading, and gives Sri Lankan merchants one more tool to consider as they chase both local and international business.
If you’re a merchant curious to try it, Bybit Pay and its CeyPay partner are accepting applications for the digital merchant slots, and the company says it will publish the names of participating businesses once selections are complete.
