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Binary Options Bonuses

Written By

William Berg

Written By

William Berg

William contributes to several investment websites, leveraging his experience as a consultant for IPOs in the Nordic market and background providing localization for forex trading software. William has worked as a writer and fact-checker for a long row of financial publications.

» William Berg Profile Page

Edited By

Tobias Robinson

Edited By

Tobias Robinson

Tobias is a partner at DayTrading.com, director of a UK limited company and active trader. He has over 25 years of experience in the financial industry and contributed via CySec to the regulatory response to digital options and CFD trading in Europe. Toby’s expertise and dedication to financial education make him a trusted voice in the industry, including a BBC investigation into digital options.

» Tobias Robinson Profile Page

Updated

May 31, 2024

We list the best binary options bonuses available right now and explain how different kinds of offers work.

What Is a Binary Options Bonus?

Binary trading bonuses are a way for brokers to encourage clients to sign up with their platform. These monetary incentives come in several formats, from raffles and trading tournaments to no deposit bonuses that do not require any financial contribution from clients. Often these rewards are in the form of trading credits with wagering requirements before you can convert them to withdrawable cash.

Types Of Binary Options Bonuses

There are several different variants of binary options bonuses offered by brokers. These can be for new customers in the form of a welcome bonus or deals for existing customers:

• No Deposit Bonus – This does not require traders to deposit into their account to receive. Clients generally just need to complete KYC steps to unlock a no deposit bonus. As it is essentially free trading money, no deposit bonuses are often smaller than other forms of rewards and deals.
• Risk-Free Trades – A “risk-free trade” is where a broker will reimburse traders for their stake if their binary options contract finishes out of the money. However, it is worth pointing out that the term “risk-free” can be misleading. Often, this refund is in non-withdrawable bonus credit that needs to be wagered in another binary options contract.
• Deposit Match Bonus – A deposit match bonus is frequently utilised as a welcome offer for new customers with binary options brokers. A brokerage firm will match a set percentage of your first deposit with bonus funds. Deposit match bonuses commonly range from 20% to 100% but may have maximum bonus limits to prevent traders from gaining too much free trading capital.
• Trading Competition Winning Bonus – Numerous brokers run frequent trading competitions that reward the most profitable traders in a set period. These can exist in the form of demo account trading competitions or leaderboards for real funds trading. While some binary options brokers pay tournament winnings in cash, many opt for bonus funds to drive clients to their platforms.
• Raffles – Raffles are another form of promotion offered by many binary options brokers. These can be for trading credit or physical prizes such as high-end technology. Traders are allocated tickets based on deposit quantities or trading volume within a set period.

The most important aspect of a binary options bonus is its terms and conditions. Traders should take great care to ensure they understand the restrictions and requirements within binary trading bonuses to avoid unexpected complications.

The first thing to understand about binary options bonuses is whether they are paid in withdrawable cash or bonus funds. Some bonuses, such as raffles and competition prizes, are more likely to be in withdrawable cash. Cash rewards are generally the best binary options broker bonus, though they are rare and often small. The most common form of monetary reward format is trading credit or bonus funds.

Bonus funds differ from cash in that they are non-withdrawable and subject to wagering requirements before they are converted into real capital. These wagering requirements are frequently based on turnover or trading volume. In a binary options financial bonus, brokers will often stipulate a large trading volume with the bonus credit before it becomes real withdrawable cash. There will be different turnover amounts for each type of bonus and, of course, between each broker.

A common tactic when offering clients a deposit match bonus is to set a high turnover value based on the enhanced deposit. For example, if a broker sets a wagering turnover of 25x, a trader that deposits $200 with a 50% deposit bonus will need to reach a trading volume of $7500: 25 times the total $300 deposit amount.

With most reputable binary options brokers it is possible to wager the bonus funds separately from your real capital to try and meet this volume. However, traders should beware of exploitative brokers that will lock deposited funds and bonus credit together, forcing traders to meet these wagering requirements before releasing their real capital for withdrawal.

Many binary options bonuses will also have expiry dates after which the bonus will be removed from the trading account. These can range from 90 days down to 30 days, so traders do not always have a lot of time to meet wagering requirements.

Regulations For Binary Options Bonuses

The rules and regulations on binary options trading bonuses vary depending on where a trader is situated in the world. Binary options contracts are restricted in some jurisdictions, including the EU, although traders can often find ways around these limitations. Some regulatory bodies that allow binary options trading have opted to cap the bonuses a broker can offer. This is designed to make binary trading bonuses less enticing to new traders who may lack experience and understanding and be drawn in by big financial promises.

Pros and Cons Of Using a Bonus

Pros

If traders are careful and selective about the binary options bonuses they opt for, they can offer many pros. Here are some of the advantages of claiming a binary options bonus:

• Potential For Profit – If traders can satisfy the trading requirements that convert a binary options bonus to cash then there is plenty of profit to be made from bonuses. Some binary options brokers’ wagering requirements will be very reasonable or even just require a real funds deposit to release bonus funds.
• Opportunity To Practice – Binary options bonuses offer traders a chance to test out their strategies with no risk and, unlike with demo accounts, a potential financial upside. Bonus funds can provide invaluable practice on the real markets before real capital is involved.
• Chance To Open Fun High Stakes, No-Risk Contracts – If a trader enjoys the thrill of risky and improbable predictions, then binary trading bonus funds provide the perfect medium for opening improbable contracts. Indeed, high stakes odds options are often a viable strategy when trying to meet higher wagering requirements in a limited time.

Cons

Binary options bonuses are often not as straightforward as they appear. Here are some drawbacks:

• Extensive Wagering Requirements – The often stringent terms and conditions of binary options bonuses are designed to minimise the amount of free capital a broker has to pay to its clients. It is not uncommon for brokers to require trading volumes of up to 40x a traders’ enhanced deposit in deposit match bonuses. In addition to this, time frames of as little as 30 days can be placed on the funds, meaning traders have to complete the high wagering requirements in a short time frame.
• Limited Ability To Withdraw Real Funds – When taking part in a binary options bonus like a deposit match or trading tournament, traders will usually have to choose between withdrawing real funds and keeping their reward. Withdrawing any of your real funds often forfeits any bonus offers in progress, so make sure that you are willing to hold your real funds in a trading account until wagering is complete.
• Exploitative Terms And Conditions – Beware of binary options bonuses that lock in real funds with bonus credit or do not guarantee a bonus award upon meeting requirements. As well as reading the terms and conditions of a broker, it is worth reading reviews and researching the company to ensure you are not being scammed.

How To Compare Binary Options Bonuses

When looking at brokers with binary options bonuses, there are several things to consider:

Reliable & Legitimate Broker

The most important step when signing up for a binary contracts bonus is to ensure that the broker is above board and dependable. Scams are rife within the binary options trading space so it is imperative not to be sucked in by a tantalising bonus without doing due diligence. Some binary options providers will be regulated by independent financial bodies. Failing this, look for reviews from trusted websites or users to make sure that a binary options bonus is legitimate.

Assets Available for Trading

An important aspect of binary options trading is the assets you can open contracts on. As binary contracts are available on a wide range of markets, including stocks, cryptocurrency, forex and commodities, traders have many possibilities. It is important to make sure that the broker offering a binary options bonus supports your favoured trading assets. Some specialised firms may simply not support all of these markets, while others will not have the asset depth in particular markets that specialise ones do.

Binary options bonuses themselves may also be restricted to certain assets. This means that traders may lack the opportunity to maximise their profits as their preferred or most profitable assets may be missing. Make sure to check the terms and conditions of bonuses for excluded assets and markets before signing up.

Type Of Bonus

Welcome binary options bonuses are often a deposit match, risk-free trade or free no deposit bonus. Existing clients may be eligible for bonuses and rewards for winning trading competitions or raffles.

Each type of binary options bonus has its pros and cons, so make sure to read the terms and conditions carefully. Avoid bonuses that lock in your real funds so that you cannot trade with personal credit separately. For those looking to make a profit from a binary options deposit bonus, smaller bonuses with lesser wagering requirements are usually the best choice.

Size Of Bonus

While receiving a higher amount of bonus credit is tempting, think about whether you will be able to meet the wagering requirements to unlock it. Indeed, higher bonuses often give traders a sense of false economy, as wagering requirements will scale with the size of the bonus. A $40 no deposit bonus with 15x wagering only requires $600 worth of total trading volume to unlock any profits made with the bonus, whereas a $100 bonus with 30x wagering requires a total trading volume of $3,000.

Wagering Requirements

As well as the total trading volume required to unlock a binary options bonus, there may be other wagering requirements to consider. Many brokers limit the total amount of time traders have to meet wagering requirements. Bonus offer durations often range from periods of 30 to 90 days. Make sure that you feel able to meet the volume requirements within the allocated time.

Associated Risk

When trying to unlock binary options bonuses, the risk that wagering requirements can pose to real funds is crucial to understand. An example of this would be risk-free trade bonuses, where real losses are compensated with bonus funds. In other offers, some brokers will only allow traders access to reward credit once they have committed all of their real funds into contracts. Other firms can bind together real and bonus funds when trading to meet release criteria.

Chance Of Profit

Some traders may wish to use their bonus funds to have fun or experiment with binary options contracts. However, many will be looking to turn their binary options bonus into profit. For these users, taking into account all of the above considerations is crucially important.

As a general rule of thumb, traders should not risk real funds for the sole purpose of obtaining bonus credit. Provided that there is no or minimal risk to real capital, the most important aspects of a binary options bonus are the trading volume requirements and time limits of a bonus. The lower the trading volume requirements and the longer the time period, the greater the chance traders will have of converting their bonus funds to real cash.

Other Considerations

Here are some more general aspects of binary options brokers and trading to consider when exploring bonus offers:

• Customer Service & Support – Checking that a binary options broker has a responsive and effective customer service department is worth doing, especially when signing up for bonus offers. Beyond answering general queries and offering support, a good customer service department will be able to help traders check their bonus offer progress and explain any unclear terms and conditions.
• Trading Apps – Many modern traders value the opportunity to create and monitor binary options contracts on the go. This is where a mobile app comes in. Additionally, a few brokers may offer exclusive mobile sign up bonuses to new or existing customers to incentivise clients to download their trading app.
• Educational Content – To help clients trade effectively, many binary trading brokers offer educational content for navigating their platforms and understanding financial markets. If you are a new investor or simply looking to brush up on your financial knowledge, this can be useful.
• Taxation – While some countries like the UK currently consider binary options trading as gambling and therefore not liable to taxation, there will be some jurisdictions in which binary contracts will have to declare their earnings for tax. Outside the UK, tax regulation differs hugely, so you should seek advice to ascertain whether you will be exempt from tax.

FAQs

Can I Get A Binary Options Bonus Without A Deposit?

See our list of binary options bonuses to find offers that enable traders to gain free trading credit or even cash with no need for a deposit. These include no deposit bonuses and demo trading competition winnings.

What Is The Best Binary Options Broker Bonus Strategy?

When comparing binary options bonuses, look for achievable wagering requirements like low trading volumes and long expiry dates. These bonuses will give trades the best chance of unlocking their bonus funds.

What Is The Biggest Binary Options Bonus?

The largest binary options bonuses will likely come from a deposit match scheme. Often used as a welcome bonus, brokers match a percentage of a traders’ deposit with trading credit, up to 100% or even more sometimes. Sizeable prizes may also be offered to the winners of trading demo competitions and raffles.

Are Binary Options Bonuses Legit?

Many reputable brokers run binary options bonus offers to entice new customers to sign up to their platform. However, some brokers that offer bonuses may be less reliable. Traders should research firms before opening an account and depositing funds with them.

What Assets Can I Trade A Binary Options Bonus On?

Not all brokers offer all available assets for binary options contracts as some may specialise in a specific market. Also, binary options bonuses may be limited to certain assets so make sure to check the terms and conditions of bonuses for excluded assets and markets before signing up.

Final Word On Binary Options Bonuses

A binary options bonus is a great way for brokers to encourage new clients to sign up and deposit through their platform. There are several different types of promotions traders to look out for, with some available for both new and existing customers. It is entirely possible for clients to profit from binary options bonus offers, though brokers make it tricky to do so with restrictive wagering requirements. Bonus funds can be used to place fun, risk-free long-shot contracts, as well as to practise binary options trading. Nevertheless, clients must read the terms and conditions of a bonus offer carefully to ensure that real funds are not tied up with bonus funds when depositing.