‘End of an era’: Arthur Hayes’ BitMEX halts operations after 11-year run

The BitMEX exchange has officially announced they will be shutting down after 11 years of operation. In 2014, Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, and Ben Delo co-founded the exchange under the parent company HDR Global Trading Limited.

BitMEX pioneered the 100x-leverage perpetual swap, which later became one of crypto’s most widely adopted derivatives products.

However, their innovation has come to an end. BitMEX announced to users that,

BitMEX exchange will shut down its operations, effective 23 September 2026 at 04:00:00 UTC.

Regulatory pressure and competition from other exchanges contributed to this shutdown.

In 2020, it faced anti-money laundering failures, resulting in guilty pleas, fines, leadership changes, and the departure of its founder. Three weeks ago, the CEO, CFO, and head of growth in the organization resigned.

BitMEX has lost a significant market share to exchanges like Binance, Bybit, and OKX and newer trading venues like Hyperliquid, among other DEXs.

What crypto users need to know

Even with the shutdown, the exchange remains a trusted platform for crypto users, with a record of zero customer funds lost. BitMEX has halted registration of new accounts.

Additionally, they have encouraged crypto traders to close their positions and withdraw funds as soon as it’s convenient. Otherwise, positions will be force-closed on the shutdown day. BitMEX reiterated the safety of the funds, saying,

We want to reassure you that your assets remain fully safe and under your control during this transition period.

Community reactions

The community has had nostalgic reactions, with most being positive due to its security. Users echoed that BitMEX had zero cases of customer funds being lost during its operation.

A user who took his first trade in crypto wrote,

Definitely an end of an era for the crypto space!

Why is Arthur Hayes trading elsewhere?

On-chain data showed that co-founder Arthur Hayes continued trading through other institutional platforms.

For instance, Hayes bought 644.34 ETH valued at $1.25 million in the past 24 hours. Over the past 8 days, he has accumulated 3,270 ETH valued at $6.27 million, and not a single token has been traded on BitMEX.

However, most major exchanges impose restrictions that ban founders, executives, and key employees from trading on the platform, which could explain this situation. The goal is to prevent illegal market manipulation or insider trading, even though some exchanges allow it under strict surveillance.

Final Summary

• BitMEX will close on the 23rd of September 2026 following a strategic business review.
• Users should close positions and withdraw funds before restrictions begin on the 26th of August.