BitMEX 24-Hour Trading Volume Tops $10 Billion for the First Time

BitMEX, a cryptocurrency trading platform that offers up to 100x leverage, reportedly set a new record for 24-hour trading volume on Saturday — surpassing $10 billion for the first time.

New record for BitMEX trading volume. Praise be to volatility and our wonderful traders! pic.twitter.com/iLMGdpz65n

— Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) May 12, 2019

According to a recent tweet by CEO Arthur Hayes, the surge in volume came as investors traded the major breakout in Bitcoin ($BTC) and its resulting volatility.

New daily record of $BTC volume on @BitMEXdotcom. All exchange charts are much lower volume so it looks like these faithful beras are responsible for this massive volume. Thanks for providing your liquidations; couldn’t have done it w/o ya. pic.twitter.com/21l0UWG0Q8

— AskMeHowToGetRekt (@IAmRipoff) May 12, 2019

Notably, BitMEX’s 30-day volume currently stands at $85.97 billion, so Saturday’s volume was several times larger than the recent daily average, likely aided by significant short position liquidations.

BitMEX isn’t the only group that has saw a surge in volume thanks to the late-week rally, as the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which currently trades over-the-counter on OTCQX, saw its volume exceed $50 million on Friday — enough to make it the most actively traded OTC stock.

Trading volume on Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (symbol: $GBTC) exceeded $50 million today and was again the most actively traded stock on @OTCMarkets OTCQX https://t.co/wcaCcYNIqg

— Barry Silbert (@barrysilbert) May 10, 2019

Clearly, investors are beginning to warm up to the idea that cryptocurrencies are back in a bull market.