Bybit CEO Ben Zhou discusses shift from attack prevention to assuming hacks will happen and building resilience; highlights cold wallet security improvements and the importance of social engineering defenses.
Security & Exploits ·
Bybit's leadership has shifted its operational mindset away from attack prevention toward accepting that breaches will occur and focusing instead on damage containment and organizational survival, according to remarks made by co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou. Speaking in April 2026 following the exchange's own security incident, Zhou emphasized building resilience into exchange infrastructure rather than pursuing an impossible standard of impermeability.
The exchange has moved to reduce third-party dependencies in its cold storage setup by developing an in-house hardware wallet system that requires staff physical presence to access the HSM. Zhou acknowledged that such banking-grade infrastructure is resource-intensive to construct and maintain, explaining why most platforms continue outsourcing custody components. Beyond technical measures, he stressed the need to layer defenses against social engineering attacks—a threat vector often overlooked in purely technical hardening efforts.
The remarks reflect a broader industry recalibration in how exchanges frame security responsibility. Whether this philosophy translates into measurable improvements in breach response times, customer fund recovery, or institutional confidence in centralized platforms remains to be seen.