Global Regulatory Crackdown Continues – Banc de Binary, TDOptions, Opteck and More

CySec Continue to Hunt Binary Options – Fines Given

The global regulatory crackdown on binary options continues. What also continues is the obvious lack of international standards for regulation. The lack is evidenced by the fact that many binary options brokers that are receiving warnings are in fact regulated, just not in the country that is warning against them.

Once such is Banc De Binary (BBinary), the first EU broker to receive a CySEC license. CySEC recently revealed a number of fines issued against the broker for offering binary trading services to US clients, a no-no for any non-CFTC brokerage. While mildly alarming it really isn’t that big a deal as the charges stem to BDB’s original foray into the US, back in 2012-2013, which was stopped by the CFTC. It is very likely that the charges filed against BDB were brought forth under pressure from US regulators because it took more than a year for CySEC to levy them.

This is not to say the CySEC has not been doing a good job. The regulator has provided a firm foundation for the industry and has been actively enforcing its mandate since regulation was introduced in 2012. The regulator works to ensure that licensed brokers meet the required standards and those unlicensed brokers are not allowed to benefit from fraudulent claims. Most recently the organization issued a second warning against TD Option, a SpotOption white label falsely alleging CySEC regulation in its marketing to Asian clients. The broker was fined 50,000 euros for this same reason back in 2013.

Aussies and Canadians Target Binary Options Brokers

In a move similar to that of the CySEC the Australian ASIC has undertaken binary options regulation, classifying them as an investment vehicle. They have recently issued warnings against Opteck, not for providing binary options, but for providing unregulated binary options to Australian citizens. Other agencies such as Canada’s FSA have also been making moves of this sort, not so much to keep binary options out of their countries but to ensure that those offering them are properly regulated.

Canadian law allows for all types of binary options trading so long as the brokers are registered with the proper authority, usually the province in which the broker wishes to operate. Ontario, British Columbia and other Canadian provinces have been quite vocal in their warnings but fail to account for the fact that some of the brokers they are listing are in fact CySEC regulated. These include trusted brands like 24Option, AnyOption and many others.

No Standard for International Regulation

It is understandable that unregulated brokers receive a warning but there should be some concessions for those brokers who are CySEC compliant and/or regulated in their country of origin. The problem is that there is no standard of trading so regulations vary from one country to the next. Even when binary is regulated there is no standard in place; some countries choose to treat them as gambling while others view them as investment vehicles. Until this changes expect to keep hearing warnings, even for brokers that have proven their reliability.