BitMEX was founded by HDR Global Trading Limited which was founded by the ex-bankers Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, and Ben Delo back in 2014. BitMEX is now a trading platform that operates around the world and is registered in Seychelles. The short name stands for the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange and is currently one of the largest Bitcoin trading platforms with a daily volume of more than 35,000 BTC and more than 540,000 accesses per month.

Unlike most of the trading exchanges, BitMEX only accepts deposits through Bitcoin which can later be used to purchase a variety of other cryptocurrencies. The platform specializes in sophisticated financial operations such as margin trading which means there is trading with leverage available. Like many of the exchanges that operate through cryptocurrencies, this platform is also unregulated in any jurisdiction. In order to create an account on BitMEX, each user first has to register with the website. The registration only requires an email address and the email has to be genuine as the users will receive an email to confirm the registration in order to verify the account. Once the users are registered, there are no trading limits and the traders have to be at least 18 years of age to sign up.

We have to mention that BitMEX does not accept any US-based traders and will use the IP checks to verify that the users are not coming from the United States. Some of the users have managed to bypass this by using a VPN but we do not recommend that the US individuals sign up to the BitMEX service especially since there is alternative exchange available to service US customers that function within the US legal framework.

The platform allows users to trade cryptocurrencies against a number of fiat currencies especially the US dollar, the Chinese Yuan and the Japanese Yen. BitMEX allows their users to trade a number of different cryptocurrencies namely Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Dash, Litecoin, Monero, Zcash, Tezos, and Ripple. The trading platform on BitMEX is simple and very intuitive making it extremely easy to use for those who are unfamiliar with trading and crypto markets. However, the interface does look a little dated when compared to the new platforms. Once the users sign up to the platform, they should click on the Trade button and all of the trading instruments will be displayed beneath.

Clicking on the particular instrument opens the order book, recent trades and the order slip on the left side. The order book will show you three columns and the bid value for the underlying asset, the total USD value of all orders and their quantity. The widget on the platform can be changed according to the users’ viewing preferences and allows them to have full control over what is displayed. It also has a built-in feature that provides for the TradingView charting which offers a variety of charting tools and is considered to be a huge improvement. Once all of the trades are made, the orders can be easily spotted in the trading platform interface and there are also tabs where the users can select their active orders and stops.

 

BitMEX uses a method called auto-deleveraging which ensures the users that the liquidated positions are able to be closed when the market gets volatile. This tool means that there is a position bankrupt without the available liquidity the positive side of the position deleverages in order of profitability, the highest leverage position is first in the queue. Although BitMEX is optimized for mobile, it only has an Android app and there is no iOS app available at present. It is also recommended that the users use it only the desktop version if possible.