BitMEX Crypto Exchange Announces Closure After AML Violations

BitMEX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has announced its closure following a strategic review of its business. The decision was made by HDR Global Trading, the owner and operator of BitMEX, effective September 23. Users are urged to close their positions and withdraw their funds, with the assurance that their assets remain safe and under their control.

The exchange's co-founders, Benjamin Delo, Arthur Hayes, and Samuel Reed, pleaded guilty in 2022 for failing to implement a Bank Secrecy Act-compliant anti-money laundering program. However, they were later pardoned by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Prosecutors had accused BitMEX and its founders of willfully violating the Bank Secrecy Act between 2015 and 2020 by failing to adopt anti-money-laundering and 'know your customer' programs.