BitMEX, one of the oldest trading platforms in the world, has announced that it will launch its spot crypto exchange, BitMEX Spot Exchange. Retail and institutional investors will be able to buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) at spot rates following the launch.
Apart from Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), the platform will also include Chainlink (LINK), Uniswap (UNI), Polygon (MATIC), Axie Infinity (AXS), and ApeCoin (APE), all trading against the Tether stablecoin (USDT).
According to the release, the business chose to launch its own spot exchange last year in response to increased crypto trading demand from its user base.
Alexander Höpner, CEO of BitMEX, said,
“Today, BitMEX is one step closer to providing our users with a full crypto ecosystem to buy, sell, and trade their favourite digital assets. We will not rest as we aim to deliver more features, more trading pairs, and more ways for our clients to take part in the crypto revolution.”
BitMEX, unlike other spot exchanges, has previously focused on derivatives, allowing users to buy and sell contracts such as futures, options, and perpetual on a variety of crypto assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum. But user demand has made the platform re-think its initiatives.
In February 2022, BitMEX founders Arthur Hayes and Hong Konger Benjamin Delo pleaded guilty to breaking the Bank Secrecy Act. March, the court sentenced the three co-founders of the BitMEX crypto derivatives exchange to pay a total of $30 million in civil monetary penalties.
Additionally, following a failed takeover of the German bank Bankhaus von der Heyd, the company allegedly lay off roughly 75 people, or a quarter of its workforce, in April.
While markets are still hurt from the liquidations that sent shockwaves a few weeks ago, investors are still eagerly awaiting spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States. There has been no further development in that regard, while Australia received its very first Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF.
At press time, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $30,523.67, while Ethereum (ETH) was trading at $2,089.26.