BitMEX to End Services Sept. 23; Trading Reduce-Only Aug. 26

BitMEX, the Seychelles-based cryptocurrency derivatives platform, will end exchange services at 04:00 UTC on Sept. 23, 2026. Trading will switch to reduce-only at 04:00 UTC on Aug. 26, 2026, and the platform said it may force-close open contracts during the wind-down period.

New account registrations have already stopped. Customers are required to close positions and withdraw funds within the two-month window. Under the platform’s wind-down timetable, risk limits take effect on Aug. 26, after which traders can only reduce existing positions. Any contracts still open at the Sept. 23 cutoff will be closed immediately by the platform. The notice does not provide a mechanism to transfer open positions to other venues, so exposure opened elsewhere would be treated as separate trades.

Accounts that miss the closure deadline will still be able to log in to view balances and account records and to request withdrawals. BitMEX warned that additional account reviews and blockchain network constraints could delay some withdrawals. The company said there will be no priority service for moving funds. KYC-verified accounts that retain assets after the wind-down will incur a monthly charge equal to the greater of $50 (or equivalent) or an annual rate of 1% on the remaining balance.

A same-day market snapshot showed BitMEX’s 24-hour volume at about $120.84 million with roughly $705.33 million in open interest. For comparison, another large derivatives venue registered about $45.68 billion in 24-hour volume and $25.10 billion in open interest on the same snapshot. Based on those figures, BitMEX’s 24-hour turnover was approximately 0.26% of that larger venue’s on the same day.

Where displaced flow will move is not publicly tracked. Platform eligibility, accepted collateral, contract specifications and matching mechanisms will affect individual traders’ venue choices. A recent market estimate put the combined share of several large centralized derivatives platforms at about 72.46% of the covered derivatives market.

Onchain trading venues also show significant activity. One onchain venue reported $240.5 billion in 30-day perpetual volume and $8.6 billion in open interest in June. Available data indicate multiple deep liquidity pools exist across centralized and decentralized venues.

Traders now face firm deadlines: trading becomes reduce-only at 04:00 UTC on Aug. 26, with possible forced closes during the wind-down, and full service ends at 04:00 UTC on Sept. 23. After that time, remaining balances must be handled through withdrawal requests subject to account review and blockchain processing timelines.