Arthur Hayes is a co-founder of the cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, BitMEX. Born in California in 1983, he earned an economics degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 2006.
He subsequently worked as a trader at Citibank, Deutsche Bank, and Timber Hill before launching BitMEX in 2014 with Ben Delo, Samuel Reed, and Gregory Dwyer.
Hayes’s experience in finance has helped to make BitMEX one of the preeminent exchanges for trading digital assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), and Litecoin (LTC).
As Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director, Hayes steered the company to become a major player as it evolved into one of the largest crypto exchanges by volume. According to CoinMarketCap data, BitMEX trading volume was more than $2 billion per day at its peak.
Before its success however, Hayes faced difficulties when his former employer Timber Hill sued him for allegedly violating a noncompete agreement after launching BitMEX.
The case eventually settled out of court but this wasn’t the only legal challenge that Hayes faced. On October 1st, 2019, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a civil suit against BitMEX alleging that it operated an unregistered trading platform and violated multiple regulations.
This caused investors to flee from the exchange and its value plummeted by almost half within days.
Adam Ciralsky wrote a profile piece about Hayes for Vanity Fair shortly after these events unfolded but some aspects remain unknown; namely details about his current whereabouts or any other plans he may have going forward.
In his profile piece, Ciralsky mentions that “Hayes remains largely at large” suggesting that he has yet to surface since the CFTC lawsuit was announced and that he could be anywhere in the world right now.
However, there is speculation that he could be living in Singapore as most other members of the team have relocated there with no public sightings reported elsewhere despite Interpol has issued an international arrest warrant for him late last year.
It remains unclear what will be next for Arthur Hayes but one thing is certain: whatever happens next will undoubtedly shape not just his future but also the future of cryptocurrency markets around the world as well due to his influence on them through his role at BitMEX.
Conclusion
Arthur Hayes has had a dramatic impact on the cryptocurrency markets since launching BitMEX in 2014.
Despite facing difficulties with Timber Hill and more recently the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, his influence remains strong even though his current whereabouts remain unknown.
As speculation about where he might be continues to grow, it is certain that whatever happens next for Arthur Hayes will have an effect not only on himself but also on the future of cryptocurrency markets around the world.
