Market News

UK’s FCA warns against binary options brokers Polarity Index and AG Capitals

Nov 26 2018
By Jonathan Smith , Find me on Google+

UK’s financial markets and services provider, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), blacklisted Polarity Index and AG Capitals on Friday. According to the regulator, these binary options brokers, that also offer account management services, are illegally targeting local citizens.

Polarity Index has a clear focus on cryptocurrencies. In fact, this is the only asset class covered by this binary options broker. It is allegedly owned and operated by Alternative Investment Specialists Ltd., but its website www.polarityindex.com lacks any essential corporate information, such as headquarters, background, financial regulation, etc.

The situation with AG Capitals is not any different. The broker operates via www.agcapitals.com and is allegedly owned by AG Capital Ltd., a company registered offshore, on the Marshall Islands. It offers trading in binary options and wealth management services.

The marketing and sale of binary options to retail consumers is now banned in the UK and throughout the EU. That is why the FCA warns that that If you are a UK resident and you are offered binary options, it is probably a scam.

Considering the how many con-artists are there on the forex and binary options market, you’d better deal only with financial services providers that are authorized by reputable financial agencies such as the UK’s FCA. The latter keeps a register where you can look up the broker’s name prior to opening an account with it. Doing a due diligence check before investing in a forex broker is also a good idea.

>> Check out our list of brokers licensed by the FCA <<

TAGS: FCA warning Polarity Index AG Capitals scam binary options UK

Broker	Advantages

	FXTM a regulated forex broker (regulated by CySEC, FCA and IFSC), offering ECN trading on MT4 an MT5 platforms. Traders can start trading with as little as $10 and take advantage of tight fixed and variable spreads, flexible leverage and swap-free accounts.
	easyMarkets is a CySEC and ASIC regulated broker offering access to over 300 trading instruments, tight fixed spreads, no slippage and a 50% deposit bonus.

	XM is broker with great bonuses and promotions. Currently we are loving its $30 no deposit bonus and deposit bonus up to $5000. Add to this the fact that it’s EU-regulated and there’s nothing more you can ask for.
	FXCM is one of the biggest forex brokers in the world, licensed and regulated on four continents. FXCM wins our admirations with its over 200,000 active live accounts and daily trading volumes of over $10 billion.
	FxPro is a broker we are particularly keen on: it’s regulated in the UK, offers Metatrader 4 (MT4) and cTrader – where the spreads start at 0 pips, Level II Pricing and Full Market Depth. And the best part? With FxPro you get negative balance protection.
	FBS is a broker with cool marketing and promotions. It runs an ongoing monthly $999 forex contest, offers a $5 no-deposit bonus for anyone willing to try out its services, and an FBS MasterCard is also available for faster deposits and withdrawals.
	FxChoice is a IFSC regulated forex broker, serving clients from all over the world. It offers premium trading conditions, including high leverage, low spreads and no hedging, scalping and FIFO restrictions.
	HotForex is a EU Regulated broker, offering wide variety of trading accounts, including Auto, Social and Zero spread accounts. The minimum intial deposit for a Micro account is only $50 and is combined with 1000:1 leverage - one of the highest in the industry.
	Exness is a leading forex broker, offering MT4 and MT5 platforms. Traders can take advantage from a true ECN environment and trade on ultra tight spreads, starting from 0 pips.

Broker	Country	Regulation	Platform	Min Deposit	Review
	US	CFTC, NFA	MT4, Web, in-house	$50	Review Website
	Cyprus, UK, Belize	CySec, FCA, IFSC	MT4, MT5, Web	$10	Review Website
	Cyprus, Australia	CySec, ASIC	MT4, Web, Mobile app	$100	Review Website
	Australia	ASIC	MT4, MT5, IRESSTrader	$100	Review Website
	UK, Cyprus, Australia	FCA, CySec, ASIC	MT4, MT5	$5	Review Website
	UK, Australia	FCA, ASIC	MT4, Trading Station, NinjaTrader	$50	Review Website
	UK, Cyprus, UAE, South Africa	FCA, CySEC, DFSA, FSB	MT4, MT5, FxPro Markets, cTrader	$100	Review Website
	Cyprus	CySEC	MT4, MT5, Web	$1	Review Website
	Belize	IFSC	MT4, MT5	$100	Review Website
	Cyprus, UK, South Africa, UAE	CySec, FCA, FSCA, DFSA	MT4, MT5, Web	$5	Review Website
	Cyprus, UK	CySEC, FCA	MT4, MT5	$1	Review Website
	Australia	ASIC	MT4, MT5	$100	Review Website
	UK	FCA	MT4, Web, MT4 for Mac	$100	Review Website

More Forex Market News

Ex-BinaryBook employee who turned into a “recovery agent” pleads guilty to fraud

Mar 19 2019 12:30:30

Ex-BinaryBook employee Austin Smith pleaded guilty to investment fraud in US court previous week. Ironically, Mr. Smith now runs a company that is supposed to help victims get their money back from binary options scams like BinaryBook. Read more

CONSOB orders RichmondFG, PTBanc, Get Financial, and CryptoEU to cease illegal operations

Mar 18 2019 17:39:16

Italy's financial regulator Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa (CONSOB) warned that RichmondFG, PTBanc, Get Financial, and CryptoEU are not licensed to provide financial services in Italy, and ordered them to cease operating illegally in the country. Read more

ColmexPro pays €50 000 in settlement with CySEC

Mar 15 2019 14:44:08

The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (the “CySEC”) has announced on Thursday that it has reached a settlement with ColmexPro of EUR 50 000. Read more

UK’s FCA updates its warning list with Kruger Exchange and PT Banc

Mar 14 2019 09:04:36

The Financial Conduct Authority in the UK updated its list of unregulated forex and CFD brokers with Kruger Exchange and PT Banc. According to the regulator, these entities have been offering, promoting or selling financial services or products in the UK without its authorization. Read more

Millennium FX, Tradovest and ForexGrand end up on CNMV’s warning list

Mar 13 2019 15:35:00

Unregulated forex brokers Millennium FX, Tradovest and ForexGrand have been the latest additions to the warning list of Spanish financial watchdog, the Comision Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV). Read more

Italian financial regulator adds Mib700, Vix500 and DeltaFxMarkets to its warning list

Mar 11 2019 14:48:18

Italy's Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa (CONSOB) has updated its warning list with unregulated brokers Mib700, Vix500 and DeltaFxMarkets. The regulator also ordered these companies to cease offering unauthorized investment services and activities to the Italian public. Read more

Germany’s BaFin orders unregulated broker XtraderFX to cease operations

Mar 08 2019 14:11:05

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has ordered XtraderFX operated by GPay Ltd. to immediately cease offering investment services and advice to German investors. Read more

Spain’s CNMV warns against IWC Investment

Mar 07 2019 16:46:14

The Comision Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) has published a statement earlier this week, warning local investors against doing business with IWC Investment. This forex broker is not authorized to provide investment services or investment advice in Spain, the CNMV said. Read more

OctaFX got licensed in Cyprus, will onboard EU clients again

Mar 05 2019 11:42:09

OctaFX got licensed by the he Cyprus Commodities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and is about to onboard EU clients again. The forex and CFD broker will soon launch its new domain, www.octafx.eu, which is currently under construction. Read more

Unregulated brokerages Gold FX Trading and Brokerz end up on FCA’s warning list

Mar 01 2019 10:45:58

The Financial Conduct Authority in the UK recently added Gold FX Trading and Brokerz to its warning list of unregulated brokers. According to the regulator, they have been providing financial services or products in the UK without its authorization. Read more