BitMEX Exchange Review and Comparison

In this Bitmex Review, we are going to cover the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange, or BitMEX, for short. Founded in 2014 BitMEX is a cryptocurrency exchange that is best known for its derivatives products and high leverage. It now also offers spot trading and other services. This review will cover these products and services and some of the platform’s pros and cons.

BitMEX Review Summary

BitMEX is a cryptocurrency exchange focusing primarily on derivatives products. It allows users to speculate on the price of cryptos with high leverage. Although it also provides spot markets, the range of supported assets is currently small compared to competitors.

Whereas the exchange used to be non-KYC (not requiring users to verify their identity), it now enforces compulsory identity verification. See more in their blog article here. That’s BitMEX in a nutshell. If you want a more detailed review, keep on reading. Here’s what I’ll cover:

1. BitMEX Overview
2. BitMEX Services
3. Currencies and Payment Methods
4. BitMEX Fees
5. Supported Countries
6. Customer Support and Reviews
7. BitMEX vs. The Competition
8. Frequently Asked Questions
9. Conclusion – Is BitMEX Legit?

---

1. BitMEX Overview

BitMEX was created by a selection of finance, trading, and web development experts. Arthur Hayes, Ben Delo, and Samuel Reed launched the exchange in 2014 under their company HDR (Hayes, Delo, Reed) Global Trading Ltd. It is currently registered in Seychelles.

The exchange became most popular for its derivatives products – most notably its Bitcoin perpetual swaps, collateralized with Bitcoin and accompanied by up to 100x leverage.

In October 2020, all three founders were indicted on charges of violating the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act and conspiracy to violate the law by failing to put in place the necessary anti-money laundering measures. All three pleaded guilty to the charges and agreed to pay $10 million each as criminal fines.

In May 2022, BitMEX expanded its platform to include spot trading services in an effort to compete with major competitors such as Binance and the former exchange FTX.

---

2. BitMEX Services

Derivatives Trading

Derivative products are BitMEX’s claim to fame, featuring both perpetual swap contracts and quarterly futures contracts. These don’t involve directly trading cryptocurrencies; rather, you trade contracts that track the price of a certain cryptocurrency asset.

Perpetual swaps are the most popular product on the exchange. They provide traders with contracts that track the price of the underlying crypto asset with no expiry. These are available for a range of different cryptocurrencies, with up to 100x leverage on some contracts. 

BitMEX also offers more standard futures contracts, which are settled on a quarterly basis. These have specific expiry dates, at which all open positions are automatically settled at the underlying asset’s market price.

All derivatives contracts on BitMEX are collateralized and settled in BTC or USDT, depending on the instrument at hand.

This type of trading is very volatile, for better and for worse. It means you can generate large profits with small amounts of money but also lose everything you’ve invested relatively quickly.

If all this sounds very confusing to you, it probably means you shouldn’t use BitMEX since this type of leveraged derivative trading is aimed mostly at experienced traders.

Spot Trading

In May 2022, BitMEX added a spot trading feature to the platform for the first time, enabling users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies rather than just speculate on their prices. 

Spot trading on BitMEX is still limited to a handful of popular cryptocurrencies currently in USDT trading pairs. Two different interfaces are available for traders on the platform:

• The default spot trading interface has candlestick charts, order books, and a complete advanced trading experience.
• A “convert” interface allows users to swap between any two supported cryptocurrencies at the going market rate. The convert feature is simple and beginner-friendly, with none of the advanced exchange features from the default spot trading interface.

Instant Crypto Purchases

To complement its spot trading features, BitMEX has also added an instant purchase option that provides users with a fiat gateway onto the platform.

This feature is facilitated by third-party payment processors OnRamper, Banxa, and Mercuryo. All allow customers to purchase cryptocurrency using any Mastercard or Visa bank card. Bank transfer and Apple Pay options are also available through these providers.

BitMEX Mobile App

BitMEX also has a mobile app available for Apple and Google Play that provides wallet and portfolio management. Users can view their balance, history, transactions, and withdrawals. Trade spots and derivatives and monitor real-time markets directly on your phone. Get the BitMEX app here. 

---

3. Currencies and Payment Methods

Derivatives

BitMEX derivative instruments allow users to go long or short on 45+ different pairs. BitMEX does not charge fees on Bitcoin deposits; deposits of Ether, Tether, and other ERC-20 coins are also free.

This means that to trade perpetual swaps or futures contracts on the platform, you will have to fund your account with one of these cryptocurrencies – swap inside the platform – and then begin speculating.

On the other hand, BitMEX provides derivatives instruments tracking the price of several assets, including:

• Bitcoin (BTC)
• Ethereum (ETH)
• Cardano (ADA)
• Chainlink (LINK)
• XRP (XRP)
• Avalanche (AVAX)
• Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
• Binance Coin (BNB)
• Dogecoin (DOGE)
• Polkadot (DOT)
• Litecoin (LTC)
• Shiba Inu (SHIBA)
• Solana (SOL)
• Tron (TRX)

Spot Trading

Fewer markets are currently available on BitMEX’s spot trading markets. However, the platform intends to list more assets as time goes on. Assets currently supported for spot trading include:

• Bitcoin (BTC)
• Ethereum (ETH)
• ApeCoin (APE)
• Axie Infinity (AXS)
• Chainlink (LINK)
• Polygon (MATIC)
• Uniswap (UNI)
• Solana (SOL)
• Tron (TRX)

Fiat Gateway

As mentioned above, BitMEX also offers a minor fiat gateway that facilitates instant crypto purchases using fiat currency. This feature is not handled by BitMEX itself but rather by third-party payment processors. BitMEX does not accept transfers or deposits. 

Users are able to fund their BitMEX accounts by purchasing cryptocurrency through one of BitMEX’s trusted third-party partners.

---

4. BitMEX Fees

Derivatives

BitMEX‘s fees are very competitive, and their fee schedule is very detailed and elaborate. In fact, most users will find them almost negligible relative to the chunky profits to be made if you’re a savvy operator.

The taker fees start at 0.075% and decrease as your 30-day trading volume increases; the highest volume traders only get charged 0.0175% on trades. Makers get a rebate the higher the trader volume goes. 

It is also important to consider the funding rate on perpetual swap contracts, a variable fee (or rebate) designed to keep the contract price in line with the underlying asset. This can be positive or negative depending on whether you have taken a long or short position and whether the contract price is above or below the spot price of the underlying asset.

Spot Trading

Spot trading fees begin at 0.075% for takers and -0.025% for makers, which is highly competitive. These fees decrease for users with higher trading volumes and can reach as low as 0.03% for taker orders and 0.00% for maker orders for traders in the highest volume bracket.

Fees can be reduced further for BMEX token stakers, depending on the quantity of BMEX staked.

Deposits and Withdrawals

BitMEX does not charge fees on withdrawals on Bitcoin. When withdrawing Bitcoin, the minimum Bitcoin network fee is set dynamically based on blockchain load and can be viewed on the Withdrawal Page.

BitMEX does charge fees on Ether and Tether withdrawals. The withdrawal fee of Tether can be viewed on the Withdrawal Page.

---

5. Supported Countries

BitMEX itself is a registered company in the Republic of Seychelles. It’s a worldwide service except for the following countries:

• United States of America
• Natural or legal persons located in, established (respectively) in, or a citizen (where applicable) of Cuba, Iran, Syria, North Korea, Crimea and Sevastopol, Donetsk People’s Republic, Luhansk People’s Republic of Ukraine, Kherson Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast (altogether, “Sanctioned Jurisdictions”).
• Natural or legal persons, resident or established (respectively), in Seychelles, Bermuda, Japan, Hong Kong SAR (in respect of spot and derivatives only), and Canada (altogether, “Restricted Jurisdictions”).
• Russian citizens or residents, including such person trading on behalf of any legal persons, who access our Services from the European Union, unless such customers are residents in the European Union or Switzerland, or dual citizens of the European Union or Switzerland and reside outside Russia.
• Legal persons located in, or established in, Russia, whose authorized persons access our Services from the European Union.

The exchange doesn’t limit access to any locations because it does not handle fiat currency deposits or trading pairs. Local laws may affect your use of the service, but this is out of the exchange’s control. If you are located in one of the aforementioned sanctioned countries, use BitMEX at your own risk.

---

6. Customer Support and Reviews

Customer support

Support is offered via an email ticket and live chat support, which is pretty standard for the industry. Testing this earlier, I was able to get ahold of an agent in under 20 seconds by just providing my email address in the live chat. I received a chat transcript shortly after our conversation. It’s worth mentioning that I received this support without being a member or user of BitMEX. 

Simple inquiries and issues can be resolved by BitMEX staff in the “Trollbox,” a public chatbox where traders can also chat with each other. While this may not be a direct line to BitMEX, it’s still really cool to be able to get a Bitcoin trader review from other users from within the exchange. In addition, users can compare their trading performance using the BitMEX leaderboard, which gives insights into the top-performing traders. This can be a useful way to see how others are performing to help BitMEX traders step up their game.

Aside from email tickets and the “Trollbo,” you can also contact BitMEX using their Twitter, Telegram Channel, or through their Discord server, which has a dedicated support channel. The service’s really nice aspect is the website, which is packed full of useful information and features. The support center gives a slick rundown of the exchange and helps educate users on complex trades.

Live updates fill the site too. An announcement box keeps users up to date with any updates and issues.

Security information is loaded into the website, which is always a must for me when I’m looking at a new exchange. With BitMEX, you can quickly discover who owns the platform and how they keep funds secure.

Multisig withdrawals that only partners can sign, cold storage, and Amazon Web Services are the highlights when it comes to security.

Reviews

No horror stories have offered themselves despite a decent hunt. Reddit and similar forums tend to be more filled with technical questions and chatter.

---

7. BitMEX vs. Bitfinex and other competitors

BitMEX isn’t the only exchange built around supplying futures trading options. Exchanges like Bitfinex and OKCoin are considered worthy alternatives, as well Phemex vs BitMEX being a common comparison made online. However, there are some differences between these exchanges and BitMEX.

Here they are in a nutshell:

• BitMEX allows higher leverage with a lower margin and a smaller minimum contract amount.
• BitMEX uses the underlying index price for purposes of margin calculations, not the last traded price. This means that a malicious trader cannot manipulate the order book and cause erroneous liquidations.
• BitMEX allows customers to select the leverage they desire via the Leverage Slider or edit it manually even while in a position.

Binance Futures is now the next closest competitor to BitMEX, featuring up to 125x leverage and similar trading features.

8. Conclusion: Is BitMEX Legit?

If you know what you’re doing and want a market-leading cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform, then BitMEX is a great choice for you. For those looking for a simpler exchange to buy and sell some Bitcoin, I suggest you look into other more user-friendly options.

The BitMEX team has used their financial and web development experience to create a slick platform that allows smooth trading while keeping users informed.

Live update features, such as the announcement tab and the live chat function, provide that little extra bonus in making sure you never miss out on crucial news. The fees round things off to make the exchange an attractive all-around package.

Have you had any experience with BitMEX? I’d love to hear about it in the comments section below.

---

See also: 15 Best No KYC Crypto Exchanges for 2024

FAQs

 

Can US Customers Use BitMEX?

BitMEX states they do not accept US traders in their terms of service. BitMEX recently updated its terms and conditions, so they require all customers to provide a photo ID, proof of address, and a selfie.

Is BitMEX a Legal Company?

Yes. BitMEX is wholly owned by HDR Global Trading Limited. The company was incorporated under the International Business Companies Act of 1994 of the Republic of Seychelles with a company number of 148707. It is worth noting, however, that whilst the company is legal and registered, the exchange itself is unregulated, and its founders have been found guilty of violating the Bank Secrecy Act in the US in February 2022.

Is BitMEX a Secure Platform for Trading Cryptocurrencies?

BitMEX’s positions and margins are checked multiple times a minute, with balances cross-checked against on-chain records every 10 minutes. Bugs, flaws, or intrusions that cause positions not to match will immediately halt our exchange. Furthermore, BitMEX’s Bitcoin custody involves multi-signature wallets with a set of private keys that control access to the BitMEX public address. A quorum of signers is randomly nominated and required to sign before any transfer occurs. No private keys are kept on any cloud server, and even in the event of a full system compromise, there would not be enough private keys available to an attacker to steal funds that are held and protected by BitMEX.

Is there a Bitmex auto trading bot?

Bitmex offers trading bot services on its website, including the BitMEX Market Maker and BotVS.