Crypto exchange BitMart will wind down after 9 years, ending trades Aug. 26. Token BMX fell 58%, and the ousted CEO says he was not consulted.
Crypto Exchange News
BitMart will wind down its trading platform. The crypto exchange, which has operated for about nine years, announced the move on July 26. Its token, BMX, fell sharply after the news.
The exchange gave a broad reason for closing, citing its operating conditions, market environment, and future strategic direction. It did not say which factor drove the decision.
Trading Ends in August
BitMart began the shutdown in stages. It stopped new registrations, deposits, and orders on July 26, and moved futures accounts into reduce-only mode. All spot and derivatives trading will stop at 1:00 am UTC on Aug. 26. The platform will fully close at 3:59 pm UTC on Jan. 31, 2027. Other products will end in phases. These include copy trading, grid trading, API trading, and the BitMart Earn, staking, lending, and Launchpad services.
Withdrawals will stay open the whole time. BitMart told users to act early. It urged them to close positions and file withdrawal requests before the Aug. 26 cutoff. Requests after that move to a separate process. Some withdrawals may face extra checks covering identity, source of funds, sanctions, and security.
BMX traded near $0.07 on July 26. It fell about 58% in 24 hours, cutting its market value to roughly $27 million. The token was already down about 70% over the past year.
BitMart's trading volume remained high, reporting $1.6 billion in 24-hour volume, up 51% from the prior period. Bitcoin (BTC) made up nearly half of it. The jump likely reflects users pulling funds out.
Related Article: BitMEX To Close After 11 Years, BMEX Token Loses 90%
CEO Says He Was Not Consulted
Global CEO Nenter Chow, who also goes by Nathan, spoke out on X. He said the company told him on July 24 that it was ending his employment, and his offboarding began right away. He said he learned of the shutdown when it became public and that he had no role in the company's decisions after July 24, adding that he was not consulted on the wind-down. Chow said his focus was on users and staff. He urged customers to trust only official channels, but to act on the notice quickly. BitMart had not responded to his statement by publication.
Chow joined BitMart from Animoca Ventures, where he was a partner. He became global CEO in April 2025. Founder Sheldon Xia then moved to group president.
The closure reverses BitMart's recent message. The company sounded confident earlier in July, as a first-half report said its asset management business grew about 256% from the prior period. Chow wrote that the firm planned to expand prediction markets, tokenized assets, and its regulatory reach. He added that BitMart aimed to operate for another eight years. In June, the company said it had secured an Australian Financial Services Licence. It also said it served more than 13 million users across more than 180 countries and territories.
BitMart has faced trouble before. It lost funds in a December 2021 hot-wallet hack. The loss of $150 million was reported. The company covered customer losses at the time.
The shutdown follows another exchange closure. BitMEX announced on July 23 it would close permanently on Sept. 23. That decision followed a strategic review. Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao called the BitMart news "tough times (again)" on X, adding that the process looked like an orderly wind-down.
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