Crypto▼ Bearish
BitMEX Shuts Down Sept 23 After Inventing the Perpetual Swap
BitMEX will close on Sept 23, 2026, ending 11 years of operation. The exchange that created the perpetual swap contract now holds 0.08% of volume as competitors dominate.
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BitMEX will shut down completely on September 23, 2026, at 04:00 UTC. HDR Global Trading Limited, the parent company, announced the closure on July 23. New account registrations stopped the same day.
The exchange that invented the perpetual swap contract in 2016 laid out a three-stage timeline. On August 26, risk limits take effect, and users can only reduce or close open positions. On September 23, all trading ends, remaining positions are force-closed, and users retain access only to view balances and withdraw funds.
Anyone who leaves KYC-verified funds on the platform after September 23 will pay a monthly fee equal to $50 or 1% of the balance per year, whichever is greater. BitMEX said it will keep contacting users who have not withdrawn.
Arthur Hayes, Ben Delo, and Samuel Reed launched BitMEX in 2014. Hayes had traded equity derivatives at Deutsche Bank and Citibank in Hong Kong before turning to bitcoin. On May 13, 2016, the exchange listed XBTUSD, the first perpetual swap contract. The product used a funding rate borrowed from foreign exchange markets to keep its price tied to spot Bitcoin without an expiration date. Paired with up to 100x leverage, it gave retail traders continuous access to high-leverage positions for the first time.