BitMEX introduced on July 23, 2026, that it’ll completely shut the trade efficient September 23, 2026, at 04:00:00 UTC, stopping new account registrations instantly following what proprietor and operator HDR International Buying and selling Restricted described as a strategic assessment of the enterprise.
The Finish of an Period
BitMEX mentioned it has skilled zero buyer funds misplaced to hacks throughout greater than 11 years of operation, and credited itself with inventing the 100x leverage perpetual swap, now probably the most extensively traded product in crypto derivatives markets and adopted throughout 1000’s of exchanges.
Co-founded by Arthur Hayes in 2014, BitMEX was as soon as among the many world’s dominant derivatives exchanges earlier than dropping market share to Binance and Bybit, in accordance with WuBlockchain.
Hayes and his co-founders stepped down from the corporate after going through US legal prices in 2020, and a reported effort to promote the trade in 2025 didn’t end in an introduced deal.
Readers can discover extra on Hayes’ background and present ventures in our Arthur Hayes crypto character profile.
What BitMEX Customers Must Do
The corporate is urging all customers to shut open positions and withdraw funds as quickly as sensible, and laid out a particular timeline customers ought to observe intently.
Threat limits take impact August 26, 2026, at 04:00:00 UTC, after which customers can solely cut back present positions, not open new ones.
Between that date and the September 23 closure, BitMEX will start force-closing open positions to handle an orderly wind-down, and any positions nonetheless open on the closure deadline will probably be force-closed instantly, with BitMEX stating it takes no duty for losses ensuing from an lack of ability to shut positions in that window.
Contracts buying and selling with restricted liquidity will undergo early settlement procedures underneath BitMEX’s regular discover course of.
All staked BMEX tokens have already been unstaked and can be found in holder accounts now.
Customers who full KYC however fail to withdraw their belongings by the closure deadline will probably be charged a month-to-month account charge equal to $50 or 1% each year on their remaining steadiness, whichever is bigger, a charge BitMEX mentioned will apply robotically and may enhance over time with advance discover.
The corporate additionally warned of heightened phishing threat through the wind-down interval, stating explicitly that no expedited or precedence withdrawal service exists, and that further assessment procedures on withdrawals could add processing time, significantly for blockchains like Bitcoin the place affirmation instances can run as much as an hour.
BitMEX mentioned all shopper belongings exceed liabilities in accordance with its revealed Proof of Reserves and Liabilities web page.
What Comes Subsequent
BitMEX customers have roughly two months earlier than the risk-limit section begins and about two months after that earlier than the trade closes totally, giving an outlined however not limitless window to exit positions and withdraw funds underneath regular circumstances moderately than throughout a compressed ultimate rush.
What this implies for you: if you happen to maintain funds or open positions on BitMEX, prioritize closing positions and withdrawing earlier than August 26 moderately than ready till nearer to the September 23 deadline, since force-closures and processing delays turn into extra seemingly the later you act.