By BitMEX has expanded its derivatives offering with the launch of Equity Perps, a new product that allows traders to gain exposure to major US stocks and equity indices using cryptocurrency as collateral.
The move marks a notable step for the exchange, which has traditionally focused on crypto-native markets, and reflects growing interest in bridging digital assets with traditional financial instruments.
Announced on January 6, 2025, the product enables 24/7 trading on US equity benchmarks, including periods when American stock markets are closed.
By doing so, BitMEX is positioning itself to attract traders seeking continuous access to equity-linked products without relying on conventional brokerage infrastructure.
Equity Perps extend BitMEX’s derivatives suite
Equity Perps are cash-settled perpetual swap contracts that track the price of individual US stocks or equity indices.
Like other perpetual contracts offered by BitMEX, they do not have an expiry date and rely on a funding rate mechanism to keep prices aligned with the underlying reference index.
Traders can take both long and short positions with leverage of up to 20x.
Margin collateral can be posted in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Tether, allowing users to deploy digital assets rather than fiat currency to access equity exposure.
At launch, the contracts cover a range of widely traded US stocks and indices, including Amazon, Apple, Circle, Coinbase, Meta, Nvidia, Robinhood, and Tesla, as well as the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
BitMEX has said it plans to expand the list of available contracts over time as the product matures.
24/7 trading and pricing mechanics
One of the distinguishing features of Equity Perps is their continuous trading availability.
While pricing during US market hours is based primarily on real-time equity prices, pricing outside those hours is supported by tokenized spot prices sourced from multiple exchanges.
This structure is designed to maintain price continuity even when traditional equity markets are closed.
Funding for the contracts is exchanged every eight hours, consistent with BitMEX’s existing perpetual swap products, regardless of US market hours.
In cases of corporate actions such as stock splits, the exchange has indicated that affected contracts will be settled early and relisted once the corporate action is complete.
All Equity Perps trades carry a maker rebate of 2.5 basis points and a taker fee of 7.5 basis points, aligning the product with BitMEX’s broader fee structure for derivatives trading.
Incentives and broader strategy
To coincide with the launch, BitMEX is offering a 70,000 USDT prize pool for eligible users who trade Equity Perps, alongside maker rebates on all contracts in the new category.
The exchange has also published educational resources and product guides on its website and blog to support users’ onboarding.
Commenting on the launch, BitMEX chief executive Stephan Lutz said the product offers traders a more flexible way to access US equity markets using crypto collateral, while removing the constraints of traditional market hours.
He added that the initiative extends BitMEX’s derivatives expertise to a broader set of global markets while maintaining the exchange’s focus on reliability and performance.
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