BitMEX, the cryptocurrency derivatives venue that helped spearhead perpetual futures trading, concluded an era on Wednesday by suspending all exchange operations except for user withdrawals.
As of Tuesday at 04:00 UTC, trading activities, deposits, and the opening of new positions are no longer supported, BitMEX announced via a statement on X. Clients can still access their accounts via the platform website to retrieve their remaining funds, although the company emphasized that making new deposits is strictly impossible.
Established back in 2014 by co-founders Arthur Hayes, Ben Delo, and Samuel Reed, BitMEX strongly encouraged participants to withdraw their assets. The firm noted that account maintenance fees now apply to identity-verified (KYC) users who keep funds sitting on the platform. This monthly penalty equals either an annualized rate of 1% of the user’s assets or a minimum charge of $50, whichever amount is greater.
This shutdown concludes an 11-year operational run for the trading platform that popularized the perpetual swap contract, which has since evolved into the primary instrument across digital asset derivatives markets. Nevertheless, the closure of BitMEX does not mean a freeze on customer funds, as the enterprise has repeatedly confirmed that withdrawal functionality remains fully operational throughout the wind-down process.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/09/23/bitmex-shuts-down-trading-after-11-years-leaves-withdrawals-open.
