Is binary options illegal

Is Binary Trading Legal In The United States?

The US is where retail binary options trading was launched in 2008, but traders in the US are gradually finding themselves out of options when it comes to trading with binary brokers. There are however new options for citizens and residents who want to do business with the top brokers.

TOP BROKERS IN THE US.

Binary Options trading in USA.

The first binary contracts were introduced to the Over-the-Counter (OTC) market in 1973, where they were exclusively traded by institutional traders. These were illiquid instruments that were traded as exotic options and were not accessible to the public. In 2008, binaries were made available to the retail end of the market when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enacted legislation to allow for retail trading of binary options.

The US binary trading market is presently expanding, and features three main brokers, otherwise known as designated contract markets or derivatives clearing organizations. Some of these brokers have affiliations with foreign companies that provide some form of value-added support to the brokers and traders working within the industry.

Two issues have defined the trading of binaries in the USA. These are:

SEC regulations on what assets can be traded The laws regarding the trading of online binaries.

According to SEC regulations, assets offered for trading in the US must be listed on the exchanges found in the country. These include assets listed on the Dow, Nasdaq, S&P500, the various commodity exchanges (e. g. NYMEX/COMEX) and the options/futures exchanges such as the CBOE.

When it comes to the laws regarding the trading of binary options on online platforms, the issues circulate around the perception of what constitutes online binary options (European-style options) and the US-style exchange traded binaries.

The CFTC has released several circulars and warnings regarding online-traded binary options, explicitly referring to them as a form of gambling. As a result, US citizens and residents are prohibited from doing any form of trading business with online-traded brokers. They are instead advised to trade with US brokers, whose product offering is in line with the laws and with the regulations of the CFTC.

The binary market in the US and the brokers operating within it, are regulated by the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Currency pairs & Spread.

The asset base available for trading on US based platforms is limited. Only 10 currency pairs are available for trading on NADEX: EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/JPY, EUR/GBP, USD/CHF, USD/CAD, AUD/USD, AUD/JPY, EUR/JPY and GBP/USD. On Cantor Exchange, the number is even lower: just six forex pairs.

All binary options settle at $0 or $100. Depending on where the asset settles at expiration, the difference between the contract price (anywhere between 0 and 100) and the settlement value (either 0 or 100) is multiplied by the number of contracts to give the trading profit or loss.

Trading platforms.

When it comes to the online trading platforms used in the market in the US, the US binary options brokers have all opted to develop trading platforms that are unique to their brand. These proprietary platforms therefore offer the US traders the opportunity to trade specific contracts in a manner that is unique to each exchange, and yet complies with the CFTC rules on how binary options in the US are to be traded.

Specifically, Cantor Exchange LLC, one of the CFTC-designated binary brokers in the US, has created an innovative platform which was designed by Tradologic, an independent software vendor. Tradologic is a well-known software vendor in the market.

Deposit and withdrawal options.

What are the most popular options for deposits and withdrawals among binary options traders? US binary options traders are able to use certain means of deposits and withdrawals that are not available to traders in other countries. There are also some means of transaction which are not available to US traders.

PayPal: The top US binary options brokers are the only binary brokers in the world to avail their traders the use of PayPal as a deposit method. In the US, PayPal accounts are linked to bank accounts. This makes it easy to verify traders. Deposits and withdrawals are settled instantly. Cheque: Cheques issued on US account such as Ach are available to US traders. These usually take a longer time to be processed. Cards: Cards issued by American Express, Diner’s Club, MasterCard and VISA are available to US traders. Deposits and withdrawals are processed instantly. Local bank wires are also available from any of the US banks.

Digital wallets are generally not available to US traders. Skrill and Neteller do not accept US traders, so these cannot be used on the platforms of binary options brokers in the US.

Legality & Regulations.

What are the legal considerations and regulatory conditions attached to the conduct of the brokerage and trading of binary options in the US? The legality of binary options in the US is contained in the various bulletins and circulars released by the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the agency which regulates the binary options industry in the US.

The legality of binary options borders on the following points:

Whether the broker has registered the assets it hopes to offer for trading with the SEC. This status is determined with a tool on the SEC site known as EDGAR. Whether the trading platform itself is registered as a trading exchange in the US. Again, the SEC website is the source of information on licensing of exchanges to offer binary options. Listing of the provider’s platform as a designated contract market. This status can be checked on the CFTC website.

Putting these three metrics together, a binary options broker can only be licensed to offer binary options in the US if:

The assets it offers are listed on an SEC-licensed exchange. If the platform is registered as a trading exchange. If the broker itself is registered as a designated derivatives contract market.

Till date, only three entities have fulfilled these conditions to warrant licensing from the CFTC.

Here are the frequently asked questions that most users have about the conduct of binary options in the US.

Answer: Contrary to the general perception, they are are legal in the US. However, they must be of the exchange-listed variety, as mandated by the SEC and the CFTC. In other words, traders are only allowed to trade binary options on assets that are listed on the exchanges found in the US market.

Is it safe to trade binary options in the US?

Answer: The CFTC is the regulator of binary options in the US. The CFTC has a reputation for being arguably the strictest financial market regulator in terms of market sanitization and enforcement of sanctions against errant brokers. Costs and punitive financial sanctions which regularly require brokers to refund money considered to have been taken off clients from irregular brokerage practices have been applied in the recent past. This makes it very safe to trade them in the US.

As a US citizen, am I allowed to trade binaries with offshore brokers?

Answer: The CFTC considers trading with offshore binary options companies as a form of online gambling, which is illegal under US law. Therefore, US citizens are prohibited from trading binary options with offshore brokers.

Do I have to pay tax on the proceeds of my binary options trading?

Proceeds of binary options trading have to be reported to the US Inland Revenue Service (IRS) and are subject to taxation.

Am I able to use binary robots on the US platforms?

Answer: US platforms are not configured to allow the user of robots.

Are binaries in the US offered on a fixed or variable payout basis?

The exchanges, NADEX and Cantor Exchange offer payouts on both a fixed and variable payout basis.

Conclusion.

The article has attempted to bring to light, the peculiarities of the US binary options market as well as the existing regulations guiding the operation of binary trading in the US. Presently, only US citizens and residents can trade exchange-listed binary options in the US. This looks to be the way things will work for a long time to come.

Related articles:

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Binary Options Laws and Legal Situation in the USA.

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The world of binary options trading is full of interesting ironies. For instance, this industry began in the US, but the interesting thing is that the country has binary options laws and regulations that alienate most world-class industry players.

Binary options trading is very popular in the US, and for years, these traders have had no local brokers to turn to. The only option was to use overseas binary options brokers that accept USA traders.

As you can imagine, this workaround was fraught with dangers, and many US traders have lost their money to scam brokers in their attempts to find binary options brokers that would welcome their business.

Additionally, many of the leading licensed binary options brokers could not accept US traders because they were trying to protect themselves. Offering unlicensed binary options trading services has caused the end of many binary options brokers.

And any half-decent broker that has worked hard to obtain licensing from a reputable authority would not risk losing it or ruining its reputation by being on a major government’s blacklist of unlicensed binary options operators.

The point is, there is no way you can be completely safe by using an offshore binary options broker as a US trader. Although binary options trading is legal in the US as per the country’s federal and state laws, the authority with the mandate to issue broker licenses is not very generous with these licenses.

Only NADEX has been given the mandate and actual US binary license to offer binary options trading in the country.

Future of US Options Regulation.

Offshore Trading Service Providers.

US Trading Laws and Regulations.

USA Service Providers’ Toplist.

Why are US Trading Laws so Weird?

Is Binary Options Trading Legal in the USA?

The funny thing is that a US resident can trade binary options without having to run into any legal problems. Only brokers run the risk of facing adverse legal action for operating in this market. But the fact that the US has a licensed binary options operator – NADEX – should prove beyond doubt that this industry is legal in this country.

The Role of US Financial Regulators.

The CFTC and the SEC have the authority to award licenses to suitable binary options operators. But before doing that, they have the much more difficult job of ensuring that the companies getting such licenses are safe, secure, and offer financial services that are permissible under the US law.

Most offshore brokers don’t fit the bill, especially when it comes to that last part. So it should not come as a surprise that just NADEX has the legal authority to offer binary options trading services in the US at the moment. The country’s laws are generally very unfavourable to offshore companies, which is why none of them has earned the regulators’ approval so far.

The truth is that some of these foreign companies are very good, and would easily meet the licensing requirements of the US regulators. However, their notoriously cautious approach to binary options licensing makes this an unachievable dream for many of these companies.

Use Only US-Licensed Binary Options Companies to be Safe.

A US binary options trader should find a broker that has been licensed to offer its services to US residents. The most prominent example of such a broker is NADEX, which is regulated by the Commodity Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC).

This binary options operator has the authority to market binary options services in the US and accept US account holders. It also has to honor some of the most stringent operational requirements in the world. Naturally, that also makes it one of the best platforms for binary options trading.

Sure, lots of US binary options traders use brokers regulated in Europe or some other offshore jurisdiction. For most part, the best of these companies are safe for US traders. But that is not enough because they also don’t really meet the legal obligations needed to serve US clients.

That generally means that US traders who have issues with their offshore binary options brokers have no way of getting protection under local laws. What that says is that offshore binary options companies should be avoided, however reputable their operations.

Only a broker that respects US binary options regulations – such as NADEX – can offer an ideal trading environment for a US trader. The binary options world has its fair share of surprises. So, it’s always better to be on the right side of the law in case things go south such as when a respected binary options regulator decides to make drastic changes to its laws, putting the future of such companies and their customers in question.

US Always Cracking Down on Offshore Brokers.

Another reason to avoid offshore brokers and stick to options like NADEX, however limited they may be, is that this country is always cracking down on binary options companies it has not licensed. So, any offshore company that is proving popular among US traders is usually well on its way to attracting the sort of attention that will get it on the country’s warning list.

It should be pretty obvious that working with a binary options broker that has appeared on some blacklist or another is generally not a good idea. Usually, this is a sign that, as a resident, you are on your own if things go wrong.

Obviously, this is because such a binary options company will feel less obliged to protect your interests. Besides, such bans mean that the company may have to terminate some key features for traders in such territories to avoid further legal problems. These can include restricted payment processing options, reduced client support services and so forth.

The other problem is that the binary options laws are still a work in progress in many parts of the world. And at any time, a legislation may be passed that could make previously tolerated operators to be viewed in negative light. This could result in them getting targeted for being in violation of local laws, and this would put the traders at risk as well.

US Binary Options Laws Still In Development.

One of the reasons that offshore brokers find it impossible to get US licensing is that the country is yet to have laws that recognize this industry for what it is. In future, this may change and offshore companies could have the authority to operate in the US legally.

When the legal environment becomes permissive, leading global binary options operators will without a doubt seek US licensing and offer their services to US traders without any hiccups. But until then, it is highly recommended that you stick to US-regulated binary options operators, however, limited this list might be.

The Best US-Licensed Binary Options Operators.

That’s easy. It’s NADEX. Only this company has managed to obtain the license to offer binary options trading services in the US. That has made it the only option a US trader can use without resulting to offshore brokers that accept US traders at the moment.

It is quite a relief that even when ranked against the best offshore broker options available to US traders, NADEX does pretty well. The quality of services it offers are quite good. With this company, client funds are also very safe and secure because NADEX has to segregate client and company funds.

US binary options traders can also expect to trade with as little as a dollar, try demo trading before using real money, and enjoy bonuses when they join this company. The platform, though proprietary, is also very well designed; and its quality is at par with the best the industry has to offer at the moment.

For this reason, NADEX is the perfect, albeit the only option for binary option traders in this country. The stringent CFTC licensing it possesses means that you can expect impeccable ethical and business conduct from this company. Besides, you can rest assured that the US law will be on your side in case the company does anything unprofessional in its dealings with you.

With offshore companies, you are mostly on your own. The laws that regulate such companies usually prioritize the safety of clients within the countries issuing the licenses. Therefore, as a US trader, no authority might help you if your rights are violated.

But with a US regulated binary options operator, you can bet that things will be different. Which is why you should stick to using a company like NADEX, even though it is your only option at the moment.

Latest Binary Options Articles & Guides.

In this article I will try to answer the question why binary options laws in the United States are so weird. I will also attempt to figure out how binary options regulations and legislation might change in the future.

In this article I will talk about the future of binary options legislation in the United States. The US has at this moment one of the most restrictive binary options laws but will this always be the case?

There are many binary options brokers in the United States but most of them are located in offshore jurisdictions. Check out and see whether or not these offshore binary options brokers are safe.

Leave a Reply.

4 Comments on "US Brokers"

If we do trade binary options from a broker outside the USA, do we have to pay taxes on any earnings?

why not try using U. S regulated brokers, most at times its been found that those regulated outside U. S are scammers , just saying.

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Binary Options Canada.

Canada's Binary Options Guide.

The Legality of Binary Options In Canada.

Canadians wishing to get involved are wondering are binary options legal in Canada, and if so, if there are any particular terms of which they should be aware.

As of September 28, 2017 the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) announced a complete ban on the advertisement, offer, sale or trade of binary options with option expiry of less than 30 days .

A Brief History.

Previously, many offshore (meaning any country but Canada) binary options brokers were regulated in fairly reputable jurisdictions like Cyprus or Japan and offered their services from there to Canadians, but that was halted in 2015-2016 for the most part.

In addition, companies “regulated” (and we do use that term loosely) in places like Belize, British Virgin Islands, St. Vincent & Grenadines and so on offered their services to Canadians as well, and those too have been mostly halted from dealing with the Canadian market mostly through Canadian blocks of credit card payments but also through regulatory interest in their operational countries.

The Ban Of Binary Options.

As of September 2017, the CSA has banned binary options with expiry of less than 30 days outright. Any solicitation of Canadian customers by a broker as of this date must be looked at as likely fraud or at the very least a black market operator.

Canadian Authorities.

Canada currently has the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) agency, which was formed by securities regulators of all ten provinces and three territories. The CSA is an umbrella organization whose objective is to try to streamline the diverse capital markets in operation across the country.

Which Broker To Use?

When researching a broker, traders should ensure that it is trustworthy, reputable, and applies fair trading practices. Fortunately all the companies listed on our website are licensed and regulated, just not by Canada itself.

See our list of recommended brokers for Canadian citizens on our binary options brokers page.

BINARY OPTIONS LEGALITY BY PROVINCE.

Because different provinces have their own financial regulations, we explore the question of binary options legality on a province by province basis.

Our Guides.

Guide By Province.

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Binary Options with expiry of less than 30 days are now a BANNED financial product in Canada. DO NOT TRADE BINARY OPTIONS IN CANADA.

CFTC Fraud Advisories.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Office of Consumer Outreach and the Securities & Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy are issuing this Investor Alert to warn about fraudulent schemes involving binary options and their trading platforms. These schemes allegedly include refusing to credit customer accounts, denying fund reimbursement, identity theft, and manipulation of software to generate losing trades.

Binary Options.

Binary options differ from more conventional options in significant ways. A binary option is a type of options contract in which the payout will depend entirely on the outcome of a yes/no proposition.

The yes/no proposition typically relates to whether the price of a particular asset that underlies the binary option will rise above or fall below a specified amount. For example, the yes/no proposition connected to the binary option might be something as straightforward as whether the stock price of XYZ company will be above $9.36 per share at 2:30 pm on a particular day, or whether the price of silver will be above $33.40 per ounce at 11:17 am on a particular day. Once the option holder acquires a binary option, there is no further decision for the holder to make as to whether or not to exercise the binary option because binary options exercise automatically. Unlike other types of options, a binary option does not give the holder the right to purchase or sell the underlying asset. When the binary option expires, the option holder will receive either a pre-determined amount of cash or nothing at all. Given the all-or-nothing payout structure, binary options are sometimes referred to as “all-or-nothing options” or “fixed-return options. ”.

Binary Options Trading Platforms.

Some binary options are listed on registered exchanges or traded on a designated contract market that are subject to oversight by United States regulators such as the CFTC or SEC, respectively, but this is only a portion of the binary options market. Much of the binary options market operates through Internet - based trading platforms that are not necessarily complying with applicable U. S. regulatory requirements. The number of Internet-based trading platforms that offer the opportunity to purchase and trade binary options has surged in recent years. The increase in the number of these platforms has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints about fraudulent promotion schemes involving binary options trading platforms.

Typically, a binary options Internet-based trading platform will ask a customer to deposit a sum of money to buy a binary option call or put contract. For example, a customer may be asked to pay $50 for a binary option contract that promises a 50% return if the stock price of XYZ Company is above $5 per share when the option expires.

If the outcome of the yes/no proposition (in this case, that the share price of XYZ Company will be above $5 per share at the specified time) is satisfied and the customer is entitled to receive the promised return, the binary option is said to expire “in the money. ” If, however, the outcome of the yes/no proposition is not satisfied, the binary option is said to expire “out of the money, ” and the customer may lose the entire deposited sum.

There are variations of binary option contracts in which a binary option that expires out of the money may entitle the customer to receive a refund of some small portion of the deposit—for example, 5%—but that is not typically the case.

In fact, some binary options Internet-based trading platforms may overstate the average return on investment by advertising a higher average return on investment than a customer should expect given the payout structure. For instance, in the example above, assuming a 50/50 chance of winning, the payout structure has been designed in such a way that the expected return on investment is actually negative , resulting in a net loss to the customer. This is because the consequence if the option expires out of the money (approximately a 100% loss) significantly outweighs the payout if the option expires in the money (approximately a 50% gain). In other words, in the example above, an investor could expect, on average, to lose money.

Investor Complaints Relating to Fraudulent Binary Options Trading Platforms.

The CFTC and SEC have received numerous complaints of fraud associated with websites that offer an opportunity to buy or trade binary options through Internet-based trading platforms. The complaints fall into at least three categories: refusal to credit customer accounts or reimburse funds to customers; identity theft; and manipulation of software to generate losing trades.

The first category of alleged fraud involves the refusal of certain Internet-based binary options trading platforms to credit customer accounts or reimburse funds after accepting customer money. These complaints typically involve customers who have deposited money into their binary options trading account and who are then encouraged by “brokers” over the telephone to deposit additional funds into the customer account. When customers later attempt to withdraw their original deposit or the return they have been promised, the trading platforms allegedly cancel customers’ withdrawal requests, refuse to credit their accounts, or ignore their telephone calls and s.

The second category of alleged fraud involves identity theft. For example, some complaints allege that certain Internet-based binary options trading platforms may be collecting customer information such as credit card and driver’s license data for unspecified uses. If a binary options Internet-based trading platform requests photocopies of your credit card, driver’s license, or other personal data, do not provide the information.

The third category of alleged fraud involves the manipulation of the binary options trading software to generate losing trades. These complaints allege that the Internet-based binary options trading platforms manipulate the trading software to distort binary options prices and payouts. For example, when a customer’s trade is “winning, ” the countdown to expiration is extended arbitrarily until the trade becomes a loss.

Unregistered Transactions, Operations, Broker-Dealers, or Trading Exchanges; Illegal Options Transactions.

In addition to ongoing fraudulent activity, many binary options trading platforms may be operating in violation of other applicable laws and regulations, including certain registration and regulatory requirements of the CFTC and SEC, as described below.

Certain Registration and Regulatory Requirements of the SEC.

For example, some binary options may be securities. Under the federal securities laws, a company may not lawfully offer or sell securities unless the offer and sale have been registered with the SEC or an exemption from such registration applies. For example, if the terms of a binary option contract provide for a specified return based on the price of a company’s securities, the binary option contract is a security and may not be offered or sold without registration, unless an exemption from registration is available. If there is no registration or exemption, then the offer or sale of the binary option to you would be illegal.

If any of the products offered by binary options trading platforms are security-based swaps, additional requirements will apply.

In addition, some binary options trading platforms may be operating as unregistered broker-dealers . A person who engages in the business of effecting securities transactions for the accounts of others in the U. S. generally must register with the SEC as a broker-dealer. If a binary options trading platform is offering to buy or sell securities, effecting transactions in securities, and/or receiving transaction-based compensation (such as commissions), it likely should be registered with the SEC. to determine whether a particular trading platform is registered with the SEC as a broker-dealer, visit FINRA’s BrokerCheck .

Some binary options trading platforms may also be operating as unregistered securities exchanges . This would be the case if they matched orders in securities of multiple buyers and sellers using established non - discretionary methods. However, there are cases where a registered broker-dealer with a trading system or platform may legitimately have no obligation to register as an exchange.

Certain Registration and Regulatory Requirements of the CFTC.

It is illegal for entities to solicit, accept offers, offer to or enter into commodity options transactions (for example, foreign currencies, metals such as gold and silver, and agricultural products such as wheat or corn) with U. S. citizens, unless those options transactions are conducted on a designated contract market, an exempt board of trade, or a bona fide foreign board of trade, or are conducted with U. S. customers who have a net worth that exceeds $5 million.

To see the most recent list of exchanges that are designated as contract markets, check the CFTC website . There currently are only three designated contract markets offering binary options in the U. S.: Cantor Exchange LP; Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc.; and the North American Derivatives Exchange, Inc. All other entities offering binary options that are commodity options transactions are doing so illegally.

Further entities that solicit or accept orders for commodity options transactions and accept, among other things, money to margin, guarantee, or secure the commodity options transactions must register as a Futures Commission Merchant. Entities that act as the counterparty (that is, they take the other side of the transaction from the customer as opposed to matching orders) for foreign currency options transactions for customers with a net worth of less than $5 million must register as a Retail Foreign Exchange Dealer.

Because of their lack of compliance with applicable laws, if you purchase binary options offered by persons or entities that are not registered with or subject to the oversight of a U. S. regulator, you may not have the full benefit of the safeguards of the federal securities and commodities laws that have been put in place to protect investors, as some safeguards and remedies are available only in the context of registered offerings. In addition, individual investors may not be able to pursue, on their own, some remedies that are available for unregistered offerings.

Final Words.

• Remember—much of the binary options market operates through Internet-based trading platforms that are not necessarily complying with applicable U. S. regulatory requirements and may be engaging in illegal activity.

• Do not invest in something that you do not understand. If you cannot explain the investment opportunity in a few words and in an understandable way, you may need to reconsider the potential investment.

• Before investing in binary options, you should take the following precautions :

1. Check to see if the binary options trading platform has registered the offer and sale of the product with the SEC. Registration provides investors access to key information about the terms of the product being offered. You can use EDGAR to determine whether an issuer has registered the offer and sale of a particular product with the SEC.

2. Check to see if the binary options trading platform itself is registered as an exchange. To determine whether the platform is registered as an exchange, you can check the SEC’s website regarding Exchanges .

3. Check to see if the binary options trading platform is a designated contract market. To determine whether an entity is a designated contract market, you can check the CFTC’s website .

• Finally, before investing, use FINRA’s BrokerCheck and the National Futures Association’s Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC) to check the registration status and background of any firm or financial professional that you are considering. If you cannot verify that they are registered, don’t trade with them, don’t give them any money, and don’t share your personal information with them.