Metal and acid sites instantaneously prepared over Ni/SAPO-11 bifunctional catalyst

•The Ni/SAPO-11 bifunctional catalyst was prepared by a novel direct synthesis method.•Highly dispersed nickel species and acid sites were formed instantaneously.•The Ni/SAPO-11 catalyst shows a great synergetic effect between metal and acid sites.•The Ni/SAPO-11 catalyst exhibits one of the highest iso-hexane yields reported.