A compatible associative algebra is a pair of associative algebras satisfying that any linear combination of the two associative products is still an associative product. We construct a compatible associative algebra with a decomposition into the direct sum of the underlying vector space of another compatible associative algebra and its dual space such that both of them are subalgebras and the natural symmetric bilinear form is invariant. This compatible associative algebra is equivalent to a certain bialgebra structure of compatible associative algebras, which is an analogue of a Lie bialgebra. Many properties of the bialgebra are presented. In particular, the coboundary bialgebra theory leads to the system of associative Yang–Baxter equations in compatible associative algebras, which is an analogue of the classical Yang–Baxter equation in a Lie algebra. Furthermore, the bialgebra can also be regarded as a “compatible version” of antisymmetric infinitesimal bialgebras, that is, a pair of antisymmetric infinitesimal bialgebras satisfying any linear combination of them is still an antisymmetric infinitesimal bialgebra.