Binary Business Scam

A scam is a dishonest representation, meant to trick someone. What makes binary options a scam is that it presents itself as an investment method, while it is nothing short of gambling with bad odds.

The simplicity of binary options is part of its attraction. Binary means “two” and refers to the fact that you only have to make a single decision about one of two outcomes. You decide on whether you think a certain asset will rise or fall in the future. 

The size of the movement does not matter. If you are wrong, you lose the money you have “invested”. If you are right, you will get a pay out of between 65%-85% of the “invested amount”. Note this is already unfair as you stand to lose 100%, but you can never win 100%. Some brokers will give you a small percentage – 5% to 15% – back, in case you lose, but they compensate this by giving you less when you win.

It is easy to see how all the human weaknesses – greed, jealousy, overconfidence in your own trading ability and knowledge plus the underestimation of risk – come into play when you see the unwanted ads for binary options pop up on your screen. 

They scream at you: “no knowledge required!”, “Make money from your own home”, “Start earning thousands of ringgits in a few hours”. Then, the fake testimonies from paid actors start to play. It’s the latest ‘get rich quick’ scheme. It’s too good to be true, literally.

You don’t need to be Einstein to realise this is a scam. If it would work as advertised, everybody would do it. Regrettably, it is always the financially illiterate people that end up being the victim and become even poorer as a result, while the brokers are the only ones who profit.