Fsa regulated binary options brokers

Ctoptions provides it’s clients with panda trading platform, where you can trade high/low, one touch, hyper and range options.

My list of forex bonuses

UK Regulated Binary Options Brokers, fsa regulated binary options brokers.

There has been a sudden surge in the number of brokers and brokerage firms operating within the UK in recent years. While there is currently no legal requirement to be registered with a regulatory body, membership of the FCA demonstrates a level of competence, trustworthiness and professionalism. We’ve found several FCA regulated binary options brokers, so you can easily choose the one that suits you best among the reputable brokerages.

UK regulated binary options brokers

Trading binary options in the UK has become increasingly popular over the last five years or so. While the risks of this type of trade are high, so are the rewards. But many countries consider these types of financial transaction as dubious, and the regulations governing them can differ from country to country. While you should ask the advice of an options trading UK broker, it’s also a good idea to know a little about the regulations yourself.

The list of UK regulated binary options brokers

FCA Uk regulated binary options and forex

IQ option – the official partner of aston martin racing

IQ option is the licensed broker, who set the new standards in the whole trading industry. Their webgl-based beautiful and fast trading platform has a huge potential, and they develop more and more trading instruments, including classic and digital options. IQ option is a partner of aston martin racing team and they’ve won in 24 hours of le mans in 2017.

Fortrade – UK based brokerage

Fortrade provides it’s clients with clean website and trading platforms for both PC and mobile devises. The broker is regulated by FCA and all online transactions are carried out in compliance with payment card industry data security standard (PCI DSS). The broker is based in london, chelsea, london, 81 fulham rd. The minimum deposit for new clients is 100 pound only.

24 option – cysec regulated binary and CFD broker

For binary options trading 24 option is the one of the first platform among all. It deserves the good reputation lot’s of traders prefer this brokerage. After opening account, clients can choose to trade short term options, high/low options, one touch options, or boundary options and even forex CFD.

Ctoption

Ctoption is the FCA authorised broker, who provides the outstanding replicator feature. The clients allowed to copy the trades of experts and other more experienced traders.

Ctoptions provides it’s clients with panda trading platform, where you can trade high/low, one touch, hyper and range options.

Who is responsible for regulating binary options trades in the UK

Most trades in, from or to the UK fall under the auspices of the financial conduct authority (FCA). However, when trades cross borders, external bodies can get involved, such as the cyprus securities and exchange commission (cysec) and
the USA commodity futures trading commission (CFTC) . The FCA regulates the industry, and will investigate complaints of improper conduct as and when they’re made. This national regulator is also the main body with which most UK regulated binary options brokers are registered.

What are the different types of binary options broker in the UK?

There are two main categories of binary options broker in the UK: those registered in the UK and those registered with offshore organisations. While there’s nothing wrong with using an options broker from outside the united kingdom, you may not have the protection afforded by affiliation to the financial conduct authority.

Before you hire the services of a broker, it’s a good idea to research their background and history of delivering results. You can ascertain an individual’s or company’s credentials by checking their listing on
the financial conduct authority website .

As well as checking for membership of the FCA, you can assess a broker’s suitability by looking at
customer reviews . You can also read the terms and conditions and FAQ sections of their website, which should give you an idea of how they operate. It’s also a good idea to check what types of financial instruments are being offered. If offers and bonuses are being offered, you might stand to maximise your returns.

If possible, check how much the broker, on average, pays out to clients. Someone with a proven track record of delivering high returns might be in a position to maximise the efficacy of your own trades. Brokers often offer different types of trading accounts, based on issues such as risk aversion, the amount being invested and long-term goals.

The UK is home to one of the most successful
binary options trading markets in the world. Find the right broker, and you can maximise your chances of financial success.

Regulators: SVG FSA does NOT regulate FX, binary options, or cryptocurrencies

4evermaat

2nd lieutenant

There have been several recent posts with either the thread's OP or other readers falsely assuming that a company mentioning that they are "registered", "regulated", et. Al. By st vincent and the grenadines financial services authority (SVG FSA or SVGFSA) implies some regulatory safeguards. So this article is to explain quite bluntly that SVG FSA has not and currently does not provide any regulation for forex, binary options, or crypto-currency service providers. This includes brokers, signal providers, and technology providers.

Just because there is no regulation, does not necessarily prevent a company from offering those services. It depends on the region. It just means that if there is no no regulatory oversight, then there is no recourse via that region's regulatory authority should a transaction turn out to have adverse outcome. So basically it is no different than having a private agreement between you and the company. If you are ok with that, then caveat emptor my dear reader.

My understanding of financial markets (particularly off-exchange markets) is that most regions do have some regulatory oversight. This can include:

Mandatory registration into a regulatory database,

Minimum capital requirements,

Post trade statistics reporting,

Segregation of client funds from other firm assets,

Fiduciary responsibility to honor deposits/withdrawals timely,

Electronic surveillance of order flow,

Other rules deemed necessary to protect the larger public.

These rules are put in place mainly due to the systemic risk that can spread to the larger society should large losses or loss of confidence occur in certain capital markets.

Another important note. There are other ways that service providers use "regulation" to try to trick people into thinking their services are more credible. So even the regulated are often fooled as they often only use very basic metrics to judge a broker's performance (spreads, leverage) and overlook other aspects of evaluating a broker's "true" business model. Those details are for another article. In the mean time, you can read this report on prime of prime service evaluation to get a basic idea of how the different brokerage tiers work.

With that said, I will quote/attach the proof directly from the horses mouth (SVG FSA and the financial intelligence unit--FIU):

[ [2019 march 29] . The FSA does not issue any licenses to carry on the business of FOREX trading or brokerage or binary options trading nor does the FSA “regulate, monitor, supervise or license” international business companies (ibcs) which engage in such activities.

Ibcs incorporated in st. Vincent and the grenadines are authorized to engage in any business activity without approval from the FSA, except where the proposed business activity relates to banking, insurance or mutual fund businesses. Banking, insurance and mutual fund businesses are licensed activities. FOREX or brokers trading licenses are not issued by any authority in st. Vincent and the grenadines.

[2019 june 15] . The authorities in st. Vincent and the grenadines are aware of the recent growing international trend of forex trading and cryptocurrency. It is advised however, that there is no regulation in place for foreign exchange (forex) trading and cryptocurrency offerings in st. Vincent and the grenadines. Furthermore, no forex trading or cryptocurrency licenses are issued in st. Vincent and the grenadines. These are speculative investments with considerable risks to the investor.

Members of the public are urged to exercise caution before engaging in any forex trading activities or accepting cryptocurrency offerings.

Regulated brokers

Not all of the binary options brokers we recommend are regulated, but a fair few of them are. Regulation alone does not create trust, but it certainly is an important consideration. What does it mean to say that a binary options broker is “regulated”? Quite simply, it means they are licensed by a relevant financial authority to operate as trade brokers. This is not the same thing as simply having a license to do business in their countries!

A lot of brokers will refer to a business license as if it is the same thing as regulation, but it is not.

Here are the regulated binary options brokers that we recommend:

Recommended binary brokers

Just who are these financial authorities, aka the regulators?

Cyprus securities and exchange commission (cysec): this is the financial regulatory agency of the republic of cyprus where numerous binary options brokers are based. They operate under the european markets in financial instruments directive (mifid). Mifid regulates investment services across the european economic area (EEA) which includes the EU and a few other countries. Cysec’s requirements for regulation are a little looser than a lot of other european financial regulators, but the fact that they operate under mifid means that customers throughout europe can trade on licensed sites and enjoy cysec protection.

Isle of man gambling supervision commission (GSC): this is an independent corporate body founded in 1962. The commission protects gamblers online by ensuring that services offered by license holders are crime-free, legitimate, and fair. You may be familiar with the GSC if you have ever played at online casinos; the popular casino pokerstars is another license holder which is regulated by the GSC. While binary options trading is an investment activity, it carries a high element of risk, which means that it overlaps with the gambling industry. This is why the GSC is a suitable regulatory agency.

Malta gaming authority (MGA): like the GSC, the MGA is an independent regulatory body responsible for overseeing and governing online gaming activities as well as traditional offline gambling in brick-and-mortar establishments.

US securities and exchange commission (SEC): this is a financial agency in the USA responsible for enforcing federal securities laws, regulating the industry, and overseeing the stock and options exchanges in the country.

US commodity futures trading commission (CFTC): this independent regulatory agency was established in 1974, and regulates the option and futures markets in the USA.

While you are not going to see binary options brokers regulated by either the CFTC or SEC, you will see their names plenty. They don’t take too kindly to binary options brokers because of the huge quantity of scams out there. This unfortunately causes them to shut out legitimate companies from doing business with USA traders as well.

Benefits of regulation

Let’s talk about the benefits of dealing with a regulated binary options broker. Why is it important? The main reason to do it is because it can provide you with confidence and trust in your broker. Each broker that is regulated by cysec or another financial authority is meeting the stringent requirements to hold a license. Those requirements protect you, the trader. They ensure you are being offered a quality product and that the market prices you are receiving are fair. They also ensure you will receive your winnings in a timely fashion.

Disadvantages of regulation

Are there any drawbacks to regulation? Unfortunately, yes. Despite the fact that regulation can be a great asset which protects the trader, it can also make it impossible to trade if you happen to be located in the USA. Cysec is particularly strict about this, and will not permit their regulated brokers to offer services to USA customers at all.

This all has to do with regulations by the CFTC and SEC. In theory, those regulations should only stop US traders from dealing in currencies and commodities on binary options platforms (not stocks and indices), but the CFTC has dealt pretty harshly with some legit companies in the past. As a result, most regulated brokers err on the side of caution. That is why the only binary options broker on the list above that allows USA traders is marketsworld, which notably is not regulated by cysec.

What do we recommend if you are a USA trader? Thankfully there are some great binary options brokers out there that are intent on continuing to offer their services to traders in the US. Some of these include unregulated brokers like boss capital, redwood options, and cherrytrade. And do not forget that you can always trade at marketsworld, which is a great choice anyway, since they offer such flexible services.

No matter where you are located, there are a handful of excellent websites where you can trade binary options online safely—regulated or not. Check out our list of top brokers and click through to view detailed reviews on each. Happy trading!

United kingdom regulated binary options brokers - FCA UK

List of BO brokers regulated by FCA UK

FX brokers liquidity info

FX brokers by trading conditions
- Spread type offered
- Execution type offered
- Leverage offered
- Hedging allowed
- Eas trading allowed
- Scalping allowed
- Swap free trading allowed
- Minimum spread on EUR/USD
- News trading allowed
- VIP trading offered
- Mirror / social trading

FX brokers by products offered
- Gold and silver trading
- Spread betting
- Oil trading
- Bitcoin trading
- Cfds trading
- Binary options trading
- Managed accounts

FX brokers by platforms
- Metatrader4
- Metatrader5
- Acttrader
- Currenex
- Saxotrader
- Sirix trader
- Ctrader
- Protrader
- Proprietary trading platforms

FX brokers offer bonuses

FX brokers by deposit options
- Bank-wire transfer
- Bank card
- Bitcoin
- Broker to broker transfer
- Cashu
- China unionpay
- Fasapay
- Giropay
- Monetaru
- Neteller
- Paypal
- Paysafecard
- Przelewy24
- Qiwi
- Skrill (moneybookers)
- Sofort
- Ukash
- Webmoney

FX brokers by minimum deposits

FX brokers by business model
- Market maker brokers
- ECN/STP brokers
- DMA/STP brokers
- STP brokers

FX brokers by regulation
- ASIC - australia
- Bafin - germany
- Cysec - cyprus
- FCA - UK
- FINMA - switzerland
- FMA - new zealand
- FSA - japan
- FSB - south africa
- FSC - BVI
- FSC - mauritius
- IFSC - belize
- NFA - USA
- UAE - abu dabi central bank

FX brokers accept USA clients

FX brokers by awards won

FX brokers offer affiliate program

BO brokers by regulation
- ASIC - australia
- Bafin - germany
- CYSEC - cyprus
- FCA - UK
- BVI - FSC - virgin islands
- IFSC - belize
- NFA - USA
- Not regulated

BO brokers by platform
- Spotoption
- Tradologic
- Tradesmarter
- Techfinancials
- Actbinary
- Metatrader4
- Proprietary platform

BO brokers by account options
- Minimum trade size
- Maximum trade size
- Minimum deposits
- Return - payouts percentage
- Maximum forex leverage
- Deposit options

BO brokers offer bonuses
- Trading contests
- No deposit bonus
- Bonus for first deposit
- Other bonuses

BO brokers by asset types

BO brokers accept USA clients

BO brokers offer affiliate program

news - forecasts

forex traders news

brokers news

introducing brokers & affiliates news

forex blog - articles

see also.

About us

submit content, add broker, add promotion

financial regulatory organizations

terms and conditions

cookie policy

forex careers

job vacancies

submit job vacancy

advertise with us (FX advertising)

Risk warning: trading forex, cfds and other leveraged derivatives is considered a high risk investment and may not be suitable for everyone. We do not provide investment advice and the bonuses or promotions offered by brokers are listed for comparative purposes only. Please read our terms and conditions and privacy policy for more information, and NFA's forex investor alert.

Regulated binary options brokers

Most binary options brokers are accredited by cyprus securities and exchange commission. As cyprus is the member of the european union, its license ‘cysec’ is accepted in every european countries, however there are various governing bodies in each country, that also regulate these trading portals.

For example australian securities and investments commission (ASIC) in australia and the financial services agency (FSA) in japan.

Cysec regulated binary options brokers

24option – #1 cysec regulated broker – keeps its focus on making a trading experience for the traders pretty simple and as profitable as possible. They offer various ebooks, videos, manual and many more things to train the traders for binary options trading. It is owned by rodeler limited.

Option web – is accredited by cysec since august 6th, 2012. This broker operates within the european union and offers free signals to the traders. It is owned by lionsman capital markets. It is also authorized by all european union regulative authorities such as FCA.

Anyoption – is owned by ouroboros derivatives trading ltd. The company is regulated by the cyprus securities exchange commission (cysec) under license no. 187/12. The website is operating since 2008 with thousand of satisfied investors from all over the world. With a wide variety of expiry points, they deal with large number of assets.

Interactive option – it is headed by pegase capital limited. They offer an exciting trading platform, effective trading tools and enriched user experience with their services. They offer signals only to their exclusive high investing traders. This brokerage firm also offers learning academy to the traders. Cysec regulated.

Traderush – offers over 100 different assets for trading european two-way options. It offers trading for expiry periods ranging from 60 seconds to 6 months in binary options trading. It offers a wide array of commodities, currencies, stocks and indices. They tend to maximize the profits of their traders with their unique trading features and tools.

10trade – is regulated by cyperus securities and exchange commission with the license number 248/14. It is owned and operated by holiway investments limited. The website offers support in various languages with secure technology to safeguards trading and investment of the traders. Apart from video, tutorials, webinars and white pages they also offer training on one on one basis to each binary options trader.

Grand option – is regulated and operated by rodeler ltd. They have a unique trading platform to provide a user experience like never before with ‘stop loss protection’. They have maintained anti-money-laundering (AML) regulations for the safety of their global investors. They are also regulated by cysec with license number 207/13.

Opteck – is the web-based name of the centralspot trading ltd, regulated by the cyprus securities and exchange commission (“cysec”), with license number 238/14. As a matter of security, the platform is SSL secured. It has authentic security from the comodo CA ltd. The website also got a security badge from idauthority™.

Top option – is controlled and operated by safe cap investments. They have some of the best products and features include rollover, double-up, buy me out, insurance, trading trends, and stock pair, in addition to popular classics such as “prooption”, “speed master” “onetouch” and “touch/no touch”. They are also regulated by cysec. Apart from that it is also regulated by all european union regulative authorities such as AFM, ASIC, and the FSA.

Redwood options – they have country-specific customer restriction due to security issues, therefore they allow traders from limited countries. The website is launched in 2013. It is owned and operated by bluesky MSY ltd. They have offices registered in london and gibraltar but operate from offices in tel aviv, israel.

DMM option – is the global online trading service provided. It is regulated by the australian securities and investments commission (ASIC) in australia and the financial services agency (FSA) in japan. They also bagged most innovative broker in the year 2014.

24 winner – is an accredited website for binary options trading. It is operated and owned by safe cap investments. They got a unique keystone trading platform for their investors.

One two trade – european traders can rest assured that their funds are safeguarded thanks to one two trade’s licensing through the LGA, the regulatory body of malta. They offer a fantastic multi-lingual web platform that is set up as a simple user interface and mobile traders are catered for with ios and android apps.

Optionrally – this cysec regulated broker is a highly recommended trading destination for traders of all levels. Optionrally offer multiple account types, including islamic accounts. They provide an intuitive platform and a range of advanced trading instruments on their web, ios and android platforms.

Binary tilt – owned and operated by scent investments limited. The company formed in the year 2013 in new zealand. They offer free trading signal to the traders. They worked for, and with multinational investment banks and the largest global brokerages.

Non regulated binary options brokers

Non regulated binary brokers are usually those that accept US traders or recently stopped accepting them. Unfortunately there is no regulated US binary options broker other then nadex. The following brokers have been around for years and are trusted in the community, even if they are not regulated.

Cherry trade – this US friendly broker is owned and controlled by red tulips consultant. They have a very user-friendly interface to provide enhanced user experience. The web portal’s customers benefit from real-time data streams from thomson reuters. They claim high payout of 81% of binary options contracts, the most generous payouts in the industry.

Porter finance – is owned by the running forrest partners ltd. The brand for binary option trading through a web-based interface is launched in the year 2014.They provide a one-touch option for their traders to know about various statistics related to asset and strategies to trade in binary options trading. Porter finance still accepts US traders.

Boss capital – is the brand of marble stone partners ltd., london. It offers trading for more than 200 assets. It is founded in the year of 2014. The web portal of boss capital claims to provide highest payouts up to 85% payout, especially in the binary options market. They have dedicated account management and customer support team to serve their traders round the clock. Boss capital stopped accepting US traders in 2015.

Magnum options – is owned by red tulips consultant ltd. It has very easy to use the platform for all kinds of traders such as beginners or pro. They do not offer any downloads for the trading platform, all the activities are done through a web-based portal. They claim to offer up to 81% payout.

All the above listed binary option trading websites offer new customer some exciting bonuses and a lot of trading tools, features and options via their respective trading platforms.

United kingdom regulated binary options brokers - FCA UK

List of BO brokers regulated by FCA UK

FX brokers liquidity info

FX brokers by trading conditions
- Spread type offered
- Execution type offered
- Leverage offered
- Hedging allowed
- Eas trading allowed
- Scalping allowed
- Swap free trading allowed
- Minimum spread on EUR/USD
- News trading allowed
- VIP trading offered
- Mirror / social trading

FX brokers by products offered
- Gold and silver trading
- Spread betting
- Oil trading
- Bitcoin trading
- Cfds trading
- Binary options trading
- Managed accounts

FX brokers by platforms
- Metatrader4
- Metatrader5
- Acttrader
- Currenex
- Saxotrader
- Sirix trader
- Ctrader
- Protrader
- Proprietary trading platforms

FX brokers offer bonuses

FX brokers by deposit options
- Bank-wire transfer
- Bank card
- Bitcoin
- Broker to broker transfer
- Cashu
- China unionpay
- Fasapay
- Giropay
- Monetaru
- Neteller
- Paypal
- Paysafecard
- Przelewy24
- Qiwi
- Skrill (moneybookers)
- Sofort
- Ukash
- Webmoney

FX brokers by minimum deposits

FX brokers by business model
- Market maker brokers
- ECN/STP brokers
- DMA/STP brokers
- STP brokers

FX brokers by regulation
- ASIC - australia
- Bafin - germany
- Cysec - cyprus
- FCA - UK
- FINMA - switzerland
- FMA - new zealand
- FSA - japan
- FSB - south africa
- FSC - BVI
- FSC - mauritius
- IFSC - belize
- NFA - USA
- UAE - abu dabi central bank

FX brokers accept USA clients

FX brokers by awards won

FX brokers offer affiliate program

BO brokers by regulation
- ASIC - australia
- Bafin - germany
- CYSEC - cyprus
- FCA - UK
- BVI - FSC - virgin islands
- IFSC - belize
- NFA - USA
- Not regulated

BO brokers by platform
- Spotoption
- Tradologic
- Tradesmarter
- Techfinancials
- Actbinary
- Metatrader4
- Proprietary platform

BO brokers by account options
- Minimum trade size
- Maximum trade size
- Minimum deposits
- Return - payouts percentage
- Maximum forex leverage
- Deposit options

BO brokers offer bonuses
- Trading contests
- No deposit bonus
- Bonus for first deposit
- Other bonuses

BO brokers by asset types

BO brokers accept USA clients

BO brokers offer affiliate program

news - forecasts

forex traders news

brokers news

introducing brokers & affiliates news

forex blog - articles

see also.

About us

submit content, add broker, add promotion

financial regulatory organizations

terms and conditions

cookie policy

forex careers

job vacancies

submit job vacancy

advertise with us (FX advertising)

Official FCA regulated binary options and forex brokers

Following the decision by the UK to leave the european union, many traders have been concerned about the effects of brexit on brokers who are regulated by the ukвђ™s financial conduct authority (FCA).

Official FCA regulated binary options and forex brokers

While the legal framework remains unchanged so far, it is important to distinguish between brokers who are regulated by the FCA and those who are authorized or regulated by another body in the european economic area (EEA).

The following brokers are EEA authorized:

24option

I Q option

Trade360

Markets.Com

Banc de swiss

UFX

The following brokers are FCA regulated:

FCA regulated V. EEA authorized

A firm that is EEA authorized is one that is regulated by another body or agency in the EEA area for example cysec in cyprus. Such brokers are allowed to offer products and services to traders in the UK but they must meet the minimum standards agreed upon by all countries in the EEA.

The FCA may also investigate and consider a dispute arising between a trader and an EEA authorized broker and may also be able to compensate customers in the event that the broker is unable to.

The compensation framework in the country where the broker is based may compensate customers too if the broker fails. A broker that is regulated by the FCA is bound by the financial laws of the UK. Such a broker must conduct itself in such a way that adheres to the standards provided for by the regulatory body to be able to offer binary options products and services legally in the UK.

FCA-regulated brokers are also subject to regular auditing to verify that they are operating according to the rules and regulations stipulated by the FCA.

FCA registered and FCA regulated

It is important to distinguish between FCA-regulated brokers and FCA registered brokers. A registered broker is simply placed on a database with information on the database indicating the brokerвђ™s physical location, qualifications, nature of business and other such attributes. A registered broker is not necessarily regulated.

On the contrary, the registered broker may not be directly regulated by the FCA and may not be subjected to audits and the financial conduct required by the regulatory body. This means the broker can conduct its operations as it feels. It is worthwhile noting that registration is usually the first step toward acquiring full regulatory status so most brokers who are registered are unlikely to start conducting themselves poorly.

Effects of brexit on FCA regulated brokers

So far, the FCA has been keen on assuring traders that they can continue trading with its regulated brokers. FCA also told EU traders who trade with FCA-regulated brokers that their consumer rights will continue to be upheld and protected.

The negotiations between the UK and the EU will continue for at least two years. Until then, the legal framework pertaining to online trading should remain unchanged. If you are an EU citizen, you may continue trading with your FCA-regulated broker вђ” the financial rules have not yet changed following brexit.

However, the FCA has required all brokers to provide their customers with information on any changes in their policies following the ukвђ™s decision to exit from the EU.

UK citizens need to appreciate that the most reliable brokers are those regulated by the FCA. It is therefore a good idea to confirm that a broker does indeed comply with the FCA standards and regulations on financial conduct.

The financial ombudsman in the UK was initially the financial services authority (FSA), which was closed on april 1, 2013. The FSA was split into the prudential regulatory authority (PRA) and the FCA. The FCA primarily protects the interests of traders investing in the financial markets in the UK, making it important to choose a binary options broker that is fully regulated by the FCA.

Conclusion

There is a difference between EEA authorized brokers and FCA regulated brokers. EEA authorized brokers are regulated by other supervisory bodies within the EU and not by the FCA.

However, these brokers may still offer their services to traders in the UK if they meet certain minimum requirements provided for by the FCA but the FCA may not audit them.

FCA-regulated brokers operate strictly under FCA rules and regulations in order to provide trading services and products to traders. These brokers are considered the most dependable as they are subject to regular audits by the FCA.

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Regulated binary options brokers

The binary options industry is constantly changing. We will update this page as soon as we find out about any possible changes. If you think any of the information on this site has changed please let us know.

What is a regulated broker?

Brokers that have obtained a valid license, and follow strict guidelines, as considered regulated, legal, licensed, authorized or legit brokers.

What is cysec?

Cysec stands for cyprus securities and exchange commission and is an independent public financial regulatory agency. As cyprus is in the european union, this license is valid within all EU states. Cysec was formed in 2001 in nicosia, cyprus and is part of the cyprus securities and exchange commission law. The first brokers were regulated in 2012 by cysec, this making the agency the first regulator to recognize binary options as investments.

Regulated vs unregulated brokers

Regulated brokers follow strict rules including supervision and control of the operations, imposing penalties to brokers. Being regulated means that the brokers operate in a more transparent way.

This does not mean that unregulated brokers are illegal, immoral or illegitimate businesses. For example the US friendly brokers are not regulated by the cysec, but US traders can still feel relatively safe with these brokers. Us traders have no choice but to join unregulated broker sites.

Legitimate binary options brokers

There are two brokers that stand out from the rest, and are considered industry leaders when it comes to regulations. These two are:
24option: regulated by cysec (#207/13), FSA/FCA, AMF, CONSOB, CNMV. They’ve been online since 2010 and are one of the most trusted online brokers.
Topoption: regulated by cysec, AMF, ACP banque de france, FSA/FCA, CONSOB, CNMV, bafin, finansinspektionen. Topoption is online since 2008 and was one of the first binary brokers online.

FSA regulated forex brokers

broker	regulated	min.Deposit	leverage	spread	promotion	review
		$10	1:1000	0.4	review website
		$50	1:400	0.4	review website
		$100	1:500	0.8	review website
		$5	1:1000	0.9	review website

The financial services authority (FSA) was the single regulator of the whole financial services industry in the united kingdom for a long time - between 2001 and 2013. The FSA took over the role of the securities and investments board and the securities and futures authority.

In the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008, the UK government decided to restructure financial regulation, and FSA’s powers and responsibilities were then split between two new agencies: the financial conduct authority (FCA) and the prudential regulation authority (PRA) of the bank of england. The PRA took over the regulation of larger financial organizations like banks, credit unions, and insurance companies, while the FCA was entrusted with overseeing the financial services industry in the UK.

Powers and responsibilities

The UK’s financial services authority was in charge of regulating the activities of banks, insurance companies and intermediaries, financial advisors like forex brokers, as well as entities engaged in the mortgage business. Its statutory objectives included maintaining confidence in the financial system, securing the appropriate degree of consumer protection and overall financial stability.

The FSA also had certain enforcement functions, but was often criticized that it wasn’t effective enough in this regard.

Structure and organization

The FSA was governed by a board appointed by the treasury, which decided on overall policy with day-to-day decisions and management of the staff being the responsibility of the executive directors.

The agency was operationally independent of government and was funded entirely by the companies under its jurisdiction through fines, fees and compulsory levies. It wasn’t accountable to treasury ministers or parliament, nor to any other authority, which became a problem at some point.

So, the FSA enhanced its responsibilities to the financial and consumer sectors in the UK by providing political, public and legal accountability, thus ensuring transparency and stability in the way it functions. More specifically, FSA’s operations started to be overseen by the treasury and parliamentary committees.

Consumer protection

The agency took special measures to help retail consumers to get a fair deal and to enhance their confidence in the retail investment market. For example, it developed its retail distribution review (RDR) programme the key elements of which were the following:

-independent advice should be truly independent and reflect investors’ needs.

-investors can clearly identify and understand the service they are being offered.

-investors should know up-front how much the service is going to cost .

-commission-bias is removed from the system and recommendations made by advisers are not influenced by product providers.

-all investment advisers should be properly qualified in order to provide the respective services.

Despite of this, the institution was criticized for not having effectively protected consumers. For example, during the financial crisis of 2007 - 2008, was the FSA could not effectively maintain the risk safety in institutions and at the same time look after the best interests of consumers. This was actually one of the reasons why the UK government decided to abolish the FSA.

Forex brokers licensed by the FSA

What interest us here, is FSA’s functions regarding the forex industry. It granted licenses to financial services providers, and monitored their activities in order to make sure they abide by the law.

Forex brokers who wished to get a license by the FSA, were required to meet a set of standards set by the institution itself in terms of the handling customer funds, undergoing regular audits, reporting transactions, and other.

Also, being a FSA licensed broker required full compliance with the relevant EU legislation, and more specifically the mifid regulations. Here are some of these requirements:

● minimum capital requirement: financial services providers in the EU have to meet certain capital adequacy requirement, which varies by country and by license type. Typically, financial services providers must hold and maintain at least €730 000, which guarantees that the company is financially stable.

● client account segregation – whenever clients deposit money in their trading accounts, it must be kept separate from the broker’s operating funds. Thus the clients’ money remain shielded in case of mishaps like a broker’s bankruptcy.

● provision of negative balance protection: this means that the broker guarantees that its clients’ balances may never become negative, so they can never lose more than they have deposited.

● transaction reporting: EU forex brokers are required to report their clients’ transactions on a regular basis. This requirement and other wide-ranging mifid measures are designed to improve investor protection and promote market integrity and transparency.

● compensation scheme: EU forex brokers are also required to take part in a compensation mechanism whose purpose is to pay compensation to covered clients, if a broker becomes insolvent or ceases trading.

The FSA and the FCA compared

First of all, the financial conduct authority is more customer-focused than the FSA was, which is even obvious from its name. The FCA is intended to be a sort of an advocate for the consumer, and as we already mentioned, the regulation of larger financial firms such as banks was outsourced to the PRA.

Furthermore, the FCA was granted with some new powers such as being able to ban products, rather than having to hold consultations about every different product, which used to eat up FSA time and resources.

Besides, there is a difference in the compensation amount available for customers of brokers regulated by the FCA and those who operated in the FSA times. If a FSA regulated broker went bankrupt, its clients were entitled to receive 100% the first £30,000 + 90% of the next £20,000, but no more than £48,000 in total by the financial services compensation scheme (FSCS). And now, traders dealing with a FCA-licensed broker may receive up to £85 000 in compensation from the FSCS.

And what is more, now that the UK has officially left the european union, there are a lot of important questions that still remain unanswered, such as will all the rules imposed on a EU level continue to be in force after the implementation period is over, and how and whether UK forex brokers will continue to operate in the EU. As regards the EEA authorized financial services providers operating in the UK, this issue is currently settled with the so called temporary permissions regime (TPR).

Also, we should point out that while traders were able to use leverage as high as 1:500 with a FSA-regulated broker, currently this isn’t possible. The european securities and markets authority (ESMA) temporarily capped the leverage available to retail traders to 1:30 in 2018, and later on the FCA adopted this restriction permanently for investor protection concerns.

We would also note that there are several overseas financial agencies with the same name as the FSA. More specifically, these are the financial services authority of the seychelles and the financial services authority of saint vincent and the grenadines (SVG). Both the seychelles and SVG are offshore destinations with requirements to forex companies ranging from few to none, so there’s no room for comparison with the former UK financial watchdog.

So, if you encounter a mention of FSA regulation on a broker’s website, be warned that this broker is most likely simply registered offshore, not licensed in the UK.

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