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GrandOption, founded in 2014, is a relatively new binary options broker based in Cyprus. Is this broker the best binary options broker platform for you? Read our full review to find out!

GrandOption Regulation

Just like the forex broking industry, the binary options industry is also notorious for being full of unethical and unscrupulous brokers, perhaps even more so. That is why the first thing we always look at when evaluating a new broker is the question of regulation.

If a broker is not regulated or weakly regulated, that means that traders who might have been scammed or taken advantage of will not have any legal recourse back to the broker.

In the case of GrandOption, the good news is that yes, it is indeed regulated. GrandOption’s holding company is Rodeler Ltd, the company behind 24Option, and Rodeler Ltd is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (“CySEC”) under license number 207/13.

While CySEC is not known to be a particularly tough regulator, it has definitely improved in recent years and is considered the standard regulator amongst binary options brokers. Furthermore, CySEC regulated firms are also required to contribute toward an investor compensation fund.

GrandOption Account Opening

At present, GrandOption offers four different types of accounts, described below. The minimum deposit amount is $250.

1. Standard Account: The standard account that offers the standard high/low and 60 seconds options. Standard account holders will also have access to GrandOptin’s VOD educational database, 24/7 trading support and the full asset list.
2. Gold Account: No restrictions on the high/low and 60 seconds options. Account holders also receive a personal market expert to help manage their portfolio plus a one-on-one market analyst session. They also get one free withdrawal per month and an extra 2% return on every trade.
3. Platinum Account: The VIP level. Account holders get a personalized trading experience with a designated market expert that is available 24/7 to assist with any and all enquiries. Additionally, they also have access to personal training sessions with senior market analysts, free withdrawals, and extra 4% return on every trade.
4. Diamond Account: The highest tier possible. Account holders can trade with zero restrictions and zero commissions plus a dedicated personal coach available at all hours. They also get a free training session with GrandOption’s top market expert, free withdrawals, and an extra 4% return on every trade.

GrandOption does not currently offer a demo account, which is a definite drawback. It also does not list the minimum deposit amounts necessary to move up the account tiers.

GrandOption Trading Platform

GrandOption uses the TechFinancial trading platform that has several features such as stop loss/take profit feature, technical analysis indicators, trader’s choice bar, dashboard with trade history and informative price charts. The platform is web based but can be accessed via mobile app as well.

The types of binary options that GrandOption offers are quite limited compared to its competitors. They only have High/Low and Above/Below options with the following expiry times:

• 60 seconds
• 5-minutes
• 30-minutes
• 1 hour, end of day
• End of week
• End of month
• Weekend

This lack of choices can be stifling for binary options traders who are used to more exotic types of binary options such as ladder and one touch.

GrandOption Asset Index

There are four asset classes that comprise GrandOption’s asset index: currencies, commodities, stocks, and indices. Currently GrandOption has 24 currency pairs, 8 commodities, 29 stocks, and 16 indices.

GrandOption Deposits and Withdrawals

GrandOption offers quite a number of deposit and withdrawal options, they are credit cards, wire transfer, Neteller, OKpay, Perfect Money, Skrill, Qiwi, and Webmoney.

GrandOption Fees

GrandOption charges two kinds of fees, withdrawal fees and dormancy fees. Dormancy fees are charged after a trading account has been inactive for three months or more. After an account has been dormant, monthly maintenance fees of $85 will be charged. Withdrawal fees are dependent on which payment method is used and can range from 0.9% (Webmoney) to 3.5% (Neteller, credit cards).

All standard accounts enjoy the first withdrawal per month free. The higher the tier of account the more free withdrawals with Platinum and Diamond accounts enjoying unlimited free withdrawals. Withdrawal requests will be processed within 7 business days.

GrandOption Trader Education

As with many binary options brokers, GrandOption does offer a trader education section to beginners which it calls its ‘GrandOption Academy’. It consists of mainly how-to text articles with images but also has video tutorials on demand, an interactive ebook, and live webinars. Overall, GrandOption’s Academy section is quite extensive and is definitely a plus point in its favor.

GrandOption Bonuses and Promotions

GrandOption, like many binary options brokers, offers various bonuses to its traders. Some examples are technology bonuses, new account bonuses for mobile applications, cash bonus, risk free trade bonus, and money back guarantee on first trade bonuses.

As with all binary options brokers, to withdraw a bonus requires traders to fulfill a minimum trading volume requirement. Nonetheless if a trader makes a withdrawal prior to meeting said trading volume requirement, the full amount of all active bonuses will be deducted from the current balance of the account along with trading Profit/Losses connected to the issued bonus.

The full calculation is quite complex and can be found, together with examples, on GrandOption’s official website.

Conclusion

Overall, GrandOption is a safe and regulated binary options broker that would be most suitable for beginners. While of course experienced traders will have no problem using its services as well, it is highly likely that they would be unsatisfied by the lack of variety in terms of binary options and assets available.

The GrandOption Academy will also be of great help to beginner traders, however we note that the lack of a demo account, which is one of the main tools that beginners can use to learn how to trade is a definite negative.