This week brought major shifts across crypto and retailtrading, with BitMEX preparing to leave the market just as perpetual swaps gainbroader acceptance. Regulatory developments also continued to reshape howdigital assets are traded, while exchanges and brokers responded to changinginvestor demand and evolving market structure.Elsewhere, retail trading activity remained historicallyelevated despite easing from recent highs, several brokers reported recordperformance, and new initiatives emerged across proprietary trading andexchange infrastructure. Together, the week's developments reflected anindustry balancing growth, regulation and structural change.BitMEX to Close as the Market It Helped Create Moves OnBitMEX announced itwill shut down its trading platform on 23 September, ending the exchange's11-year run after a strategic business review. New account registrations havealready stopped, while existing trading will gradually move into reduce-onlymode before positions are closed ahead of the final shutdown.The exchange transformedcrypto derivatives by popularising perpetual swaps during the 2017-18 bullmarket, offering traders highly leveraged products that became an industrystandard. Its decline came after years of regulatory pressure, including USpenalties over anti-money laundering failures, as regulated US venuesincreasingly introduced domestic perpetual products that challenged theoffshore model BitMEX helped establish.Dear BitMEX Users,Today, we share with a very heavy heart that BitMEX exchange will shut down its operations, effective 23 September 2026 at 04:00:00 UTC.The owner and operator of BitMEX, HDR Global Trading Limited, has made the difficult decision to close operations… pic.twitter.com/oWuqlh547f— BitMEX (@BitMEX) July 23, 2026Perpetual Swaps Continue to Expand Beyond Their CreatorWhile BitMEX is disappearing, the perpetual swap is enteringa new stage of growth. The product has expanded beyond offshorecrypto exchanges into regulated US markets, decentralised trading venuesand, increasingly, traditional asset classes. Its funding-rate mechanism,liquidation engine and insurance fund helped create a continuously tradedleveraged instrument that attracted both retail traders and professional marketmakers. Competitors broadened the model through stablecoin collateral,integrated spot markets and wider product ranges, eventually overtaking BitMEXin liquidity. The next phase is expected to see perpetual contracts competemore directly with traditional leveraged products as exchanges adoptround-the-clock synthetic trading across a wider range of assets.US Opens Defined Regulatory Routes for Crypto PerpetualsBitMEX's closure also highlighted how the USregulatory landscape has changed since offshore exchanges first developedcrypto perpetuals. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has withdrawnearlier guidance, approved regulated bitcoin perpetual products and establishedclearer frameworks for exchanges and intermediaries offering perpetualcontracts. Regulated venues including Bitnomial and Kalshi now have definedpaths to list domestic products, while Coinbase Financial Markets can provideaccess to certain foreign perpetuals under specified conditions. Althoughoffshore exchanges continue to dominate global volumes, brokers and exchangesnow have identifiable regulatory routes into the US market, provided they meetthe operational, disclosure and risk-management requirements attached tocontinuous trading.BDSwiss Offshore Business Appears to Go OfflineBDSwiss appears to have shutdown its offshore retail business after its global website stopped functioningand new account registrations were disabled. Visitors are now redirected to alogin page branded as BDS Markets, while attempts to create new accounts arerejected.Although the broker's Seychelles licence remains listed as active,Finance Magnates was unable to obtain clarification after its press contactemail bounced. The development follows the withdrawal of the group's Cypruslicence, a corporate rebranding and a significant staff exodus over recent years.Meanwhile, customer complaints on Trustpilot have continued to highlightwithdrawal issues and disputed account transfers involving former BDSwissclients.CFI Reports Record First-Half Trading ActivityCFI Financial Group posted its strongest first-halfperformance on record, reporting$5.34 trillion in trading volume during the first six months of 2026.Second-quarter volume reached $3.03 trillion, more than doubling from a yearearlier, while active client numbers and executed trades also increased. Metalsgenerated the highest trading activity, followed by equity indices, with mobileplatforms accounting for most client transactions. During the quarter, CFI alsoexpanded into additional markets, securing regulatory approval in Brazil,extending its Latin American presence and introducing new products in the Gulfregion. The company said it now operates through 15 regulated entitiesworldwide.Two Brokers Cross the $2 Trillion Monthly Volume MarkFM Intelligence's second-quarter data showed ECMarkets and TMGM becoming the first brokers to exceed $2 trillion in averagemonthly trading volume during the same quarter. EC Markets led the rankingswith an average monthly volume of $2.11 trillion, narrowly ahead of TMGM. Themilestone reflected continued consolidation among the industry's largestbrokers even as the broader market cooled from first-quarter records. FMIntelligence also announced that its long-running quarterly PDF report will bereplaced by a continuously updated Data Lab service, providing rolling brokerrankings, trading volumes and market analysis instead of quarterly snapshots.Retail Broker Volumes Ease After Record First QuarterRetail FX and CFD trading volumes moderated during thesecond quarter, according to FM Intelligence, falling9.3% from the record levels reached in the previous quarter. Despite thedecline, activity remained broadly in line with the same period last year,suggesting that trading demand has stayed historically strong.Beneath theheadline figures, the broker rankings changed significantly as several firmsclimbed rapidly over the past 12 months. The data also showed that many of thelargest brokers now generate most of their reported trading volume outsidetraditional foreign exchange, with indices, commodities, equities and cryptoproducts accounting for the overwhelming majority of activity.Former Citadel Executives Launch New CFD VentureFormer Citadel Securities executives Bryan Seegers and KevinKimmel emerged with anew brokerage venture after securing a $10 million pre-seed investment fromLondon-based venture capital firm Karatage. The startup, Epic Markets, plans tobuild a multi-asset brokerage platform focused on institutional-grade executionfor retail traders. Public details remain limited, although regulatorydisclosures on the company's website indicate it intends to offer contracts fordifference. No regulatory licences have yet been announced.The unusually largepre-seed funding round stands out both within the CFD industry and the widerventure capital market, reflecting investor confidence in the founders' marketstructure and electronic trading experience.London Stock Exchange Confirms Plans for OvernightTradingThe London Stock Exchange confirmed plans tolaunch a separate overnight trading venue during the first half of 2027,initially focusing on exchange-traded products rather than individual shares.The platform will operate outside the exchange's normal market hours to serveglobal investors seeking greater flexibility, particularly in Asia. The movereflects growing demand for extended trading as crypto platforms and several USexchanges continue expanding round-the-clock market access. The exchange saidretail demand is currently driving the initiative, although it expectsinstitutional participation to increase over time as the market develops andadditional products become available.Liquidity Questions Remain Over Extended TradingDespite the launch plans, questions remain over whethersufficient liquidity will exist outside traditional market hours. Critics arguethat offering exchange-traded products without the underlying shares maycomplicate hedging for market makers and result in wider spreads duringovernight sessions.Lowertrading activity could also increase volatility if large orders enterrelatively illiquid markets. Similar concerns have accompanied extended-hourstrading initiatives in the United States.While exchanges see longer tradinghours as a way to meet changing investor expectations, particularly among retailtraders accustomed to crypto markets, the commercial success of continuousequity trading will ultimately depend on sustained liquidity.Vietnam Targets Retail Traders Using Offshore CryptoPlatformsVietnam will begin fining individuals who tradedigital assets through unlicensed exchanges from 1 September under a newregulatory decree. Retail investors using unlicensed platforms could facepenalties of up to VND50 million, while higher fines apply to certainrestricted assets. The measures mark a significant shift by placing enforcementdirectly on end users rather than exchanges alone. The country also plans tolicense only a limited number of domestic crypto platforms under strict capitaland ownership requirements. For exchanges and brokers, the rules increase theimportance of customer verification, geofencing and broader compliance whenserving Vietnamese clients.MiCA Review Opens New Debate Over Prediction MarketsThe European Commission's review of the Markets inCrypto-Assets Regulation entereda new phase as Brussels formally sought feedback on whether crypto-basedprediction markets and perpetual futures should fall within MiCA or existingfinancial markets legislation.The consultation deadline has been extendeduntil 30 September, giving industry participants additional time to influencefuture policy. The decision could determine whether prediction market operatorsgain access to a crypto licensing regime or become subject to the stricterrules governing traditional financial instruments. With prediction marketsexpanding rapidly worldwide, the consultation could shape their long-termfuture across the European Union.Financial Commission Introduces Certification for PropFirmsThe Financial Commission launched avoluntary certification programme designed specifically for prop trading firms,creating an independent framework covering trading rules, payouts, riskmanagement and dispute resolution. Firms that satisfy the required standardsfollowing an external review will receive certification and ongoing monitoring,while traders gain access to the organisation's independent dispute resolutionprocess. The framework aims to introduce greater transparency andaccountability to the rapidly growing prop trading sector by establishingcommon conduct standards and evidence-based assessments. Industry participantsdescribed the initiative as a step towards improving confidence in a marketthat has historically lacked independent oversight.This article was written by Tareq Sikder at www.financemagnates.com.