Financial Regulator Tracker 2025

Binary options have long faced issues with fraud and weak oversight, prompting major financial regulators in the late 2010s to step in and restrict or ban abusive practices.

Even today, many binary brokers operate offshore under minimal supervision, making it difficult for traders to know which authorities can truly be trusted.

Our Financial Regulator Tracker helps you find financial regulators and agencies for different countries, barring a few microstates and territories with no formal financial authority or where data isn’t available.

To help you understand which authorities provide strong oversight and robust investor protections, we’ve built and applied a four-tier classification system:

BinaryOptions.net financial regulator classifications

Our database is, within each tier, sorted A-Z by country and includes the English link to the respective regulator where possible for accessibility.

Tier 1 Regulators

These are highly trusted financial authorities from major markets providing strong oversight and investor safeguards.

Note, EU regulators are generally included in Tier 1, as while there is national discretion in some aspects of rules and enforcement, they often pursue harmonization, with common objectives and significant cross-border cooperation.

Tier 2 Regulators

These regulators are generally reliable with robust investor protections, though with slightly less global influence or resources than Tier 1.

Tier 3 Regulators

These regulators are functional but may be under-resourced or have narrower mandates. Protections can be weaker than Tier 1–2.

Tier 4 Regulators

These are typically light-touch/offshore bodies with limited investor protections. Treat brokers registered here with high caution.

An offshore/registration-only licence does not inherently prove wrongdoing on the part of the broker, but trader protections and enforcement powers are often materially weaker than in Tier 1–2 jurisdictions.

Tip: Where a broker claims multiple licences, always check which specific regulated entity your account will be opened through.

Bottom Line

We monitor global financial regulations and update this database when:

  • New authorities are established or merged.
  • Jurisdictions tighten or loosen investor protection standards.
  • Updates come from official regulator publications, consultation papers, and enforcement announcements.

You can also use our binary options regulation checker to see whether binaries are legal or illegal in various countries.

This tracker is provided for informational purposes only. Inclusion in a specific tier reflects the opinion of our experts; it does not guarantee fund safety or regulatory protection.

Binary options remain high-risk instruments – most retail traders lose money. Always confirm a broker’s licence directly on the regulator’s official website and seek professional advice if you’re unsure.