BitMEX announced that it will cease operations on September 23, 2026, at 04:00 UTC, after its owner HDR Global Trading Ltd concluded a strategic review and decided to close the platform. The company urged users to close positions and withdraw funds before the deadline.

Founded in 2014, BitMEX was among the first platforms to offer 100x leverage perpetual swaps, a product that helped define the decentralized derivatives market. According to CoinGecko’s Q2 2026 Crypto Industry Report, centralized exchange perpetual futures volume fell 10% to $12.7 trillion during the quarter, while decentralized platforms have continued to gain share.

BitMEX will halt new account registrations immediately and introduce risk limits on August 26, preventing users from opening new positions while allowing them to reduce existing exposure. The exchange said it will force close any remaining open positions at the closure time to ensure an orderly wind‑down. In a statement, BitMEX said user assets remain safe and under individual control during the transition, and warned that phishing attempts and fake withdrawal offers may increase. The company added that it may apply additional withdrawal reviews and network restrictions due to potentially higher withdrawal activity, and that its proof‑of‑reserves process shows user assets exceed liabilities. The shutdown follows a leadership transition in which CEO Stephan Lutz, CFO Ina Steiner and chief growth officer Raphael Polansky departed in the previous month, and former chief operating officer Peter Wilkinson assumed the CEO role; co‑founder Arthur Hayes has not publicly commented on the decision.

The closure represents a notable shift in the crypto derivatives landscape, as decentralized platforms such as Hyperliquid continue to attract trading volume while centralized exchanges face evolving regulatory and operational pressures.