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BitMEX, a P2P cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform, and is owned by the Hong Kong-based, HDR Global Trading Limited. Currently, BitMEX is not registered with any legislative board. Still, it is considered a trustworthy derivative exchange. Additionally, BitMEX takes extensive security measures to protect the digital assets of its customers.
BitMEX functions more like a futures trading platform than an exchange, as it allows users to buy futures and perpetual contracts. It is not a popular choice among novice traders since it only offers advanced trading options like margin trading with 100x leverage. BitMEX is aimed at seasoned, professional traders.
If you’re new to Futures and Perpetual trading, we recommend you check out our Best Derivative Exchanges article.
This BitMEX review will analyse the most important aspects of the platform to provide you with an all-rounded overview. Although Cryptimi does its best to provide you with accurate information and updates it on a regular basis, we strongly recommend that you to visit BitMEX for any updates which might occur afterwards.
In one word, Yes! BitMEX is considered a trustworthy platform to trade cryptocurrencies. It protects the account of its users using 2FA (Two Factor Authentication) making it almost impossible for hackers/fraudsters to steal information. Additionally, BitMEX provides the option of IP Pinning so that users are notified if login is made from an unknown device. Users may also make use of the PGP encryption to avoid spam emails.
Even following an embarrassing privacy breach caused as a result of an internal email being cc’ed with 1,000 user emails, the platform has remained safe. The platform boasts that it carries out 100 audits a second and hasn’t lost a single BTC through intrusion.
BitMEX stores all user funds onto a cold storage multi-signature wallet to ensure maximum protection. Whenever a withdrawal request is placed by the customer, it is manually verified by two BitMEX employees in order to be approved. Moreover, BitMEX exchange never stores any private keys on its cloud-based servers.
How does BitMEX compare to other exchanges?
Your capital is at risk
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72% of retail CFD accounts lose money
BitMEX, whose full name is Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange, functions as a P2P Crypto trading platform. As the name suggests, it allows users to buy digital currencies only using Bitcoins. It offers different types of trading contracts like Perpetual, Future, Up and Down Contracts.
The BitMEX wallet is considered to be extremely safe to use since it requires multiple signatures to place a withdrawal request. Even if an attempt is made to hack the exchange, it is almost impossible to steal the customer’s funds as they are stored offline on hardware wallets.
Here are some other recommended crypto wallets you could check out in addition to BitMEX’s wallet services:
It won’t take you more than a couple of minutes to create an account on the BitMEX exchange. Conveniently, the platform supports password reset so in case you forget or misplace it, you can easily set a new one, with instructions sent to your registered email address.
To create an account on BitMEX, follow these steps:
Within a few minutes, you should receive a confirmation email from the BitMEX team. Click the ‘Verify My Email‘ link on that email to finish setting up your account. After having done that, you are ready to log in for the first time.
To log in to your BitMEX account, follow these steps:
Users don’t have to submit any kind of documents in order to exchange cryptocurrency using the BitMEX exchange. They can start trading immediately after creating an account. In case users lose their authenticator device for 2FA, then they need to submit the ID documents to reset the 2FA code. This makes BitMEX one of the few reputable cryptocurrency exchanges which let you trade anonymously.
Follow this procedure to deposit Bitcoins on BitMEX. Before making your deposit you should ensure that the amount of BTC is greater than the minimum deposit amount for a particular trade. Scroll down to ‘Deposit Fees’ to learn more.
BitMEX exchange doesn’t accept fiat currencies like EUR, USD, GBP. The only available option to trade digital currency on BitMEX is by first depositing Bitcoins (BTC).
Since the platform only supports Bitcoin payments, if you have another cryptocurrency or fiat currency you must first exchange it. Reputable exchanges, including Coinbase and Coinmama, are great choices to make the conversion. You can then transfer your BTC into your BitMEX account.
This example shows how to trade ETH using BTC. It is assumed that you have already deposited Bitcoins on your account.
Following the purchase, you should receive them in your wallet within 5-30 minutes once the transaction gets completed.
ETC is not available on BitMEX. If you would like to buy Ethereum Classic (ETC) using a credit card, then Coinbase will be the best option. Alternatively, you can try Binance if you would like to buy altcoins using BTC or other cryptocurrencies.
To purchase LTC using different payment methods, please visit our buy Litecoin Guide Here!
BitMEX processes withdrawals once in a day (13.00 UTC). Apart from BTC, users cannot withdraw any other currency.
Since withdrawal requests are processed manually, you should ensure that the request is placed before the cut-off time. Otherwise, it won’t get included in that day’s batch. Note that BitMEX will send a confirmation email before processing your withdrawal request to keep you in the loop.
If you intend to cash out using fiat currency you can send your BTC from BitMEX to your Coinbase wallet and then cash out on Coinbase.
Check out our recommended crypto casinos where you can deposit and play with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, once you withdraw from BitMEX:
BitMEX allows its members to buy altcoins, but only by exchanging Bitcoin.
BitMEX accepts users from almost all countries in the world including the UK, EU, Australia, and Canada, but not from the US.
The list of supported countries is very long and encompasses every country except the ones listed in the next section.
BitMEX is not available to residents in the US. Other excluded countries include Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Quebec (Canada), Sevastopol, Syria, and Sudan.
BitMEX offers a transparent and easy-to-understand fee structure.
BitMEX will deduct a fee for every trade made on your account as follows:
Trading Fees
BitMEX works on a maker/taker model and the trading fees depend on the type of order (contracts/futures) and the cryptocurrency. For Traditional Futures, when trading BTC, BitMEX rebates the maker trader 0.05% and charges -0.01% to the taker. That’s right! The maker earns a fractional profit!
It’s important to note that BitMEX fees apply on the entire leverage, not just the margin. For example, trades for $10,000 for XBT with 100x leverage is 100 [leverage] x $10000 [margin] x (0.05/100) [maker fee] x 2 [entry and exit] = $1,000.
Since fees get significantly higher as the leverage increases, you should place limit orders as BitMEX pays the maker trader 5% at 100x leverage through the rebate. The negative % indicates a rebate given to the trader for creating market liquidity, hence the ‘Maker’ term.
To see BitMEX full and updated fee structure visit their website and click on ‘Fees’ at the bottom of the screen.
Deposit/Withdrawal fees
BitMEX doesn’t charge any fee to deposit Bitcoin. Except for the network fee, it doesn’t deduct any withdrawal fee either. The network is a fee based on the blockchain load and is a fee charged whenever a transaction occurs on the Bitcoin blockchain. This is also known as ‘Miners Fee’. It is completely independent of the platform.
BitMEX has not set any withdrawal limits for its users. However, it has set a value for the minimum deposit to trade. The minimum amount to trade varies from trade to trade, but if we consider XBTUSD (XBT is BTC), it is 1$ * 1% (Initial Margin) = $0.01. At XBT/USD price of $6500, this equals 0.00000154 XBT ($0.01/$6500).
BitMEX doesn’t accept any type of fiat payment like credit/debit cards or bank transfer. Users must deposit Bitcoin to start trading.
To protect its customers’ account from unauthorised access, BitMEX offers 2FA (Two Factor Authentication). If the Strict IP Pinning option is enabled, then users will be notified of any logins from an unknown device. Whenever the user places a withdrawal request, BitMEX will only start processing it after getting confirmation from the user via email. This step should help prevent hackers from making unauthorized withdrawals.
If you experience any issues with your account, the best option is to contact their support team by submitting a ticket. To do this, simply visit their site and scroll to the bottom and click on ‘Support’. Alternatively, you can contact support via live communication channels like Weibo, Wechat (ID: bitmex), IRC and Telegram in Russian. Additionally, you can also refer to the FAQ / Knowledge Base section on the website.
Even though BitMEX is available on social media platforms like Twitter or forums like Reddit, it doesn’t provide customer support through these channels.
BitMEX now offers an app for users to trade, which is available on both Google Play Store and Apple App Store. More details are available on their blog: Introducing BitMEX Mobile.
Whilst the internet is rife with rumours of an official BitMEX mobile app and Copy Trader platform, none of these features has been confirmed by the platform. We will update this section whenever an official statement is offered by the company. In the meantime, we invite you to check out BitMEX’s blog which can be accessed from the footer menu.
Whilst both platforms are significantly larger than many others, Binance specialises in offering crypto to crypto exchanges, whereas BitMEX is best suited for investing in futures. In 2019, Binance introduced card payments, allowing users to exchange fiat currency into any of the 400+ digital currencies available. Both platforms are considered to be better tailored for experienced cryptocurrency traders, and both offers charting tools. BitMEX, however, offers additional trading tools, including up to 100x leverage.
Even though the names of these two exchanges look similar, they differ in their functionality. As a US-based cryptocurrency exchange, Bittrex accepts US residents whereas BitMEX accepts members from almost all countries in the world except the US. When compared with Bittrex, BitMEX only supports a limited number of cryptocurrencies. Regarding the payment methods, BitMEX currently accepts Bitcoins only, whereas Bittrex allows its verified customers to buy cryptocurrencies using fiat currencies.
BitMEX provides up to 100x leverage for future and perpetual contracts, whereas Bittrex doesn’t support margin trading.
Often, these two exchanges get confused among novice traders because of the similarity in their names. BitMEX offers more leverage and advanced trading techniques when compared to Bitfinex. Even though both these exchanges aim to provide better security for customers’ funds, Bitfinex has added more advanced security features (after a significant hack) when compared to BitMEX which has never been hacked.
Bitfinex accepts fiat-based payments via bank transfer whereas BitMEX only supports Bitcoin deposits. Regarding the fees, Bitfinex charges a marginal fee when compared with BitMEX for market purchases.
BitMEX offers advanced trading techniques for professional traders like margin trading, offering a superior solution when compared to most competitors. The platform also allows users to buy primary altcoins, but only if they intend to resell them eventually, since withdrawals are only done in BTC. BitMEX offers an attractive margin trading opportunity for those looking to step up their trading experience whilst understanding the risks involved.
In order to go short on BitMEX you need to open a position by selling instead of buying.
You can set a Stop Loss limit on BitMEX from the open order screen.
BitMEX offers up to 100x leverage, which means that you can open positions 100 times larger than your capital.
The best way to make a lot of money on BitMEX is to perform several, short-term trades aiming for small profits each time.
According to industry sources, BitMEX makes $700,000 in derivative fees on a daily basis.
BaseFEX is a recently launched derivatives exchange with a promising future. Launched back in 2018, it offers a great user experience, minimal fees and good liquidity, but does it have what it takes to outrun BitMex?
Bybit is a futures trading platform that allows users to trade perpetual contracts from top cryptocurrencies, namely Bitcoin, Ethereum, EOS and Ripple.