Binary Options Trading in Brazil
By land mass, Brazil is the largest country in South America, and also the most ethnically diverse. Its currency, the Brazilian Real, is watched by market experts and traded on a few forex platforms. It is used as a benchmark currency to feel the pulse of emerging market currencies. So what is the state of binary options trading in Brazil?
Binary option trading is surprisingly a well sought after form of investment by Brazil. As a member of the BRICS group of countries, Brazil finds itself as one of the emerging market destinations. Interest in financial investments, including binary options, is on the increase. The challenge for Brazilian traders, is getting a broker in Brazil that conforms to the regulatory standards of the country, as well as getting an offshore binary broker that offers products and a trading portal in Portuguese.
Recommended Binary Brokers in Brazil
Regulation
The financial markets in Brazil are regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Brazil, known in Portuguese as Comissão de Valores Mobiliários or by its acronym, CVM. The CVM has an effective internal regulatory policy on the financial markets. No company is licensed to offer binary options and forex in Brazil, even though the trading of these instruments is not considered illegal. It is very difficult for foreign brokers to enter the Brazilian market directly (i.e. have a local branch on the ground).
CMV has been able to severely curtail the marketing activities of offshore binary options brokers. The few of them that are able to slip through the cracks barely manage to escape regulatory scrutiny. However, they are assured of a lot of business simply because there is a huge demand, and suppliers that can meet that demand are few.
What this means is that effectively, there are no local binary brokers in Brazil. Anyone Brazilian trader who wants to trade binaries must use the services of offshore brokers. Many Brazilians patronize European binary options brokers, not necessarily because they are among the better regulated offshore brokers, but because of the Portuguese language offering. Many offshore brokers are recognizing the opportunity and are recruiting Portuguese speakers to man their Latin American sales desks, with specific focus on Brazil. Brazil happens to be the only Portuguese speaking country in South America, so this makes a lot of sense from a marketing standpoint.
Currency Pairs & Spread
The Brazilian Real (BRL), paired with the US Dollar, is the most famous currency pairing of the Real on the binary market. Most retail brokers that feature emerging market currencies would definitely feature the USD/BRL currency pair. Bovespa, which is Brazil’s stock exchange, is also featured prominently on many platforms as a stock index asset.
In terms of the spread, the bid and ask prices of a currency pair are not usually shown on trading platforms. Therefore, Brazilian traders should not expect to be provided with Bid/Ask prices for the assets they trade.
Trading Platforms
The binary options platforms encountered by Brazilian traders are a mixture of proprietary platforms and turnkey platforms, with a large preponderance of turnkey platforms from CySEC-regulated brokers being used.
Bonuses
CySEC has banned the issuance of bonuses by its regulated brokers. Non EU binary options brokers such as those located in Mauritius and Seychelles, still make bonus issuance an integral part of their business. So the availability of bonuses to Brazilian traders will depend on which brokers are used.
Deposit and Withdrawal Options
What deposits and withdrawal are available to traders in Brazil?
Binary options brokers offering services to Brazilian citizens realize that it is essential that these traders have ease of transactions whenever they want to make deposits into their trading accounts or effect withdrawals. The following transaction methods are available to these traders:
- Bank wires: Brazilians are able to use bank wires to perform transactions on binary options platforms. It is possible to get US Dollars using the local currency to handle these transactions.
- Digital wallets: The local digital wallet known as Boleto is very popular and is accepted on many international broker platforms. Boleto also has the advantage of using Skrill for payment processing. So it is possible to deposit and withdraw funds to a Boleto account using Skrill, providing fast transaction times. Boleto Bancario transactions are done in BRL, so Skrill provides a great way to convert funds into US Dollars for deposits, and withdrawals into the local currency from US Dollars.
- Credit/Debit Card: Local bank cards can also be used. All transactions are done in BRL and may require conversion at a premium.
Legality & Regulations
What are the legal considerations and regulatory conditions attached to the conduct of the brokerage and trading of binary options in Brazil? Binary options in Brazil are controlled by the CMV, who at the moment, are not kindly disposed to issuing licenses to brokers to start offering the product. Most Brazilian binary options traders now trade with offshore brokers offering the product in Portuguese.
FAQ
Here are the frequently asked questions that are asked regarding the conduct of binary options in Brazil.
- Are binary options legal in Brazil?
Answer: The trading of binary options is not prohibited in Brazil, as there are no specific laws banning the trading of binaries there.
- Is it safe to trade binary options in Brazil?
Answer: Trading binary options in Brazil is safe if offshore regulated brokers are used.
- As a Brazilian citizen, am I allowed to trade binary options with offshore brokers?
Answer: There is no law expressly prohibiting the trading of binaries by Brazilian traders with offshore brokers. While the CMV is opposed to this action, traders in Brazil still trade with offshore brokers.
- How do I check the status of a binary options broker?
The CMV website does not have a portal for confirming the status of binary brokers. It is left for the traders to do their own due diligence, usually by confirming the status of brokers with the regulators of the countries where such brokers are located.
- What digital wallets can I use to fund my account as a Brazilian trader?
Answer: The commonest digital wallet used for binary options transactions from Brazil is Boleto Bancario. It integrates with Skrill and Neteller for conversion of Brazilian Real to the major account currencies used by offshore brokers.
- Is it possible for binary options traders in Brazil to transact on platforms using PayPal?
Answer: While PayPal is available in Brazil, it is not usually a channel for transacting on platforms.
Best Binary Options Brokers in Brazil
The top binary options brokers in Brazil are usually offshore brokers who are regulated, and who have a robust Portuguese language interface as well as payment channels suited for the Brazilian trading public. Examples of such brokers are:
Conclusion
The Brazilian binary market is dominated by a few offshore brokers that have managed to break the CMV’s wall of resistance to get to the trading public. The top binary brokers in Brazil are therefore not locally licensed brokers, but rather foreign brokers that have been able to offer payment solutions like the Boleto, with a robust Portuguese interface, and still maintain their licensed status with their country regulators. These are the binary options brokers Brazilian traders should do business with.