Mega-quake in the binary options industry: Finance Magnates has learned Banc De Binary, one of the biggest global providers, is shutting down its operations, winding down its business and leaving the binary options industry for good.

A high level official at the CySEC-regulated binary options provider has confirmed the news, explaining that the move was taken by the firm’s owners following the consistently negative press that the company faced over the past year.

Join the iFX EXPO Asia and discover your gateway to the Asian Markets

To unlock the Asian market, register now to the iFX EXPO in Hong Kong.

“It’s become the wild west in the past few months,” the company official told Finance Magnates. “Its just not worth the tarnished reputation. I don’t see how we can continue operating under such scrutiny and public image.”

The official explained that all arrangements have been made to stop accepting new customers. “All client funds are being sent back to their original source. We’re just waiting for the official announcement from the board to begin the process. They are literally about to kill a five hundred million dollar company, but even worse – the icon of the binary option industry,” he concluded.

Sponsorships and inquiries

Banc De Binary was founded 2009 by Oren Laurent and at its peak employed hundreds of employees. Its headquarters are located in Israel, with an office in Limassol Cyprus. The first signs of trouble could be seen last September after England premier league club Southampton revoked a sponsorship deal that it had signed with Banc De Binary only a few weeks earlier. The British football club didn’t elaborate on its reasons for backing off from the deal, but mounting pressure from local newspapers must have played at least some role.

Since its establishment, Banc De Binary has been a high profile binary options provider, even sponsoring Liverpool FC for one year. On the other hand, it was the center of few press inquiries, including a special report by Finance Magnates about the way UK tabloids were duped by a sophisticated affiliate program – Banc De Binary was one of the sites traders were being diverted to.

The firm has been under the scrutiny of many regulators recently. Last February, the provider was forced to pay $11 million to US authorities after several years of investigations regarding the illegal targeting of US customers.

As part of the settlement Banc De Binary reached with the American Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), its founder had to pay $150,000. Just a month before, in January 2016, Banc De Binary faced another blow when CySEC fined it €350,000.