24Option Review for Australians

24Option is a big name in the industry. Over the years, it has been licensed by major, reputable financial regulators (CYSEC, FCA, BAFIN) and has thus earned the trust of the trading community.

But despite standing the test of time, can this broker be trusted? And even more importantly, is it helpful to Australian traders? We’ve gathered as much information about this service as possible to answer these questions. Read on to see why 24 Option managed to maintain a very high influx of clients, and what drawbacks this company has.

Table of Contents

History and Background

24Option.com was founded in 2010 by Rodeler Limited, a Cyprus Investment Firm, and their office is located in Limassol, Cyprus. The same company is also an owner of 24FX, a retail Forex brand. Since 2013, it has been regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission.

It’s also important to mention the MiFID Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding markets and financial instruments. Under the Directive, 24Option received a permit allowing it to conduct operations in the European Union. Rodeler Limited is also regulated by the International Financial Services Commission (IFSC) of Belize, which further establishes the service’s credibility.

Is 24option Available in Australia?

24 Option may be a viable choice in many countries all over the world, but the vital thing to point out here is the attitude of the Australian regulators. Unfortunately, Australian traders are not accepted by the platform at the moment.

These restrictions weren’t always there. In fact, until 2015, Australians were able to trade through 24Option. What changed were the regulations imposed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Since 2015, only companies regulated by the ASIC can accept Aussie traders. Since 24Option is regulated by CYSEC, it contradicts this new regulation.

Other countries that don’t accept 24Option are United States, Canada, China, Israel, Switzerland, Japan, New Zealand, Bahamas, and Pakistan.

Account Types

Now it’s time to consider the account options presented by the company. There are major differences between the different account types, and each client can decide for themselves which one suits them best. You can choose an account type from the following list:

Basic – Traders can manage their positions through the MetaTrader 4 platform and the company’s own web platform. The minimum deposit is 250 AUD, which is a common limit in the industry. As for the trading assets, there are Major, Minor, and Exotic currency pairs presented, but they vary greatly in terms of spreads – four, three, and seven pips respectively.
Silver – This one has the same features as the Basic account, but with some additional perks. For example, you can receive help from a Personal Trading Coach and receive personalized trading alerts from the software. The minimum deposit to become a Silver account member is 2,000 AUD.
Gold – You can use all the services included in the Basic and Silver accounts. Additionally, you will receive trading alerts via SMS and email. Plus, every time you open a new trade, you will receive an extra 2% return. The minimum requirement for a Gold account is a deposit of 25,000 AUD.
Platinum – As you can guess, this account is basically Basic + Silver + Gold. You will also gain exclusive access to a Live Training Session and a research website, both of which are very helpful. As for your return, you will receive an extra 4% return for every new position. To become the owner of a Platinum account, a client needs to deposit a minimum amount of 50,000 AUD.
Diamond – Lastly, you have the Diamond account, which combines all the perks included with the previous tiers. But obviously, the benefits here exceed all of them. You will be able to work with a customizable trading platform, which gives you infinitely more freedom in your activities. Additionally, you will receive tickets to all Juventus FC soccer matches in Europe. To set up this account, you will need to contact the client’s account manager and arrange everything individually.

Deposits and Withdrawals

Before you can make your first deposits and withdrawals, you will need to go through a verification process. More information on that is provided later. The payment methods currently offered at 24 Option are:

Bank transfers – This is when the client instructs their bank to send money directly into another bank account. This option is simple but isn’t used much these days since the process can take up to 5 days to deposit the money and up to 7 days to withdraw it.
Debit/credit cards – Deposits are made almost instantly with this option, but withdrawals take significantly longer – up to 7 days, as with bank transfers. But this method is still more convenient than wiring transfers. Make sure the card is registered in your name for the payment to go through.
Electronic wallets – If you use Skrill, Neteller, Giropay, or Sofort, you can choose one of those. Unfortunately, 24Option doesn’t accept PayPal . These conditions are the same as with debit/credit cards – deposits are almost instantaneous, and withdrawals are carried out within 7 days.

As for withdrawals specifically, users need to remember about fees. Unless you are a Platinum or Diamond user, you will be charged extra. The exceptions to the rule are the free monthly withdrawal funds for Gold users and the free first withdrawal as a Basic user. But other than that, the fees are as follows:

Wire transfers – 20 AUD
Credit cards. – 3.5%
Skrill – 2%
Neteller – 3.5%

Account Verification

When you first set up your account, you will be asked to provide certain documents for full verification. As proof of identity (POI) and proof of residence (POR), you will need to submit:

Documents to support your identity in the form of a valid passport/national ID or a driver’s license. Make sure the document is clear on both sides and that all the information and the photo are clearly visible.
Bank statement/utility bill . If the statement/bill is from more than six months ago, it won’t be accepted. As for the quality of the picture, the same applies here – it should be clear and provide your address in full.
Credit/debit card info . This one is tricky because it’s unsafe to provide a CVV code. However, you can cover it and still submit a picture of the card from both sides.

Customer Support

24Options offers 24/7 support services and several ways for you to communicate with them, such as:

Email
Live Chat
Web Contact Form
Telephone

Since the service operates in many parts of the world, it needs to cater to its international audience. The range of languages their customer support teams use is pretty impressive. The list includes English, Russian, German, French, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Supported Devices

24Option exists in both a web-based and a mobile-based version. Therefore, you can trade on the following devices:

Desktops
Laptops
Mobile phones
Tablets

The web-based version runs on Windows , macOS , and Linux , and the mobile app is available for iOS and Android . Both versions are free to download and offer similar functionalities and trading abilities.

Complaints

The biggest complaint is that 24Option doesn’t work in Australia . It would be great if the team worked on their ASIC licensing, but they haven’t made any promises in that regard.

Along with this, the platform was accused of upselling. This means that account managers working for the platform approached users and offered to trade on their behalf . Even though it sounds tempting at first, managers usually end up over-trading from the user’s account. Sometimes, it even puts them into debt.

Regardless of where you trade, you should always take precautions to prevent this from happening. Never let anyone trade on your behalf . If you’re approached by an account manager, never accept their offer (even if they claim they can generate decent profits).

Pros and Cons

Here are the strengths of 24Option:

Extensive list of underlying assets for trading
Offers CFDs in addition to binary options
Free trading alert signals
Supports many different languages
Quick and helpful support
Compatible with MetaTrader 4
Additional benefits for the most active and loyal users

The service isn’t flawless, so here are drawbacks:

Doesn’t accept Australian traders
No demo accounts
No 24/7 trading due to no Electronic Communication Network support
High withdrawal fees (compared to other services)
Was involved in upselling controversies
History of regulation breaches

Conclusion

We’ve covered most of the things you need to know about 24Option. Overall, it has a good reputation and has been operating for many years, which is definitely a plus. It can be a decent choice for beginners to intermediate traders.

But even though 24Option has an abundance of benefits, the fact that it doesn’t support Australian traders eliminates it from the list of top brokers. If you’re an Australian resident, you’ll need to continue your search.