Knesset Sweeping Out Binary Options

The Knesset moved forward on legislation to extend the ban on binary–options trading to overseas markets as well as within Israel on Monday, Globes said.

The Knesset Reforms Committee approved a bill submitted by the Ministry of Finance and the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) amending the Securities Law that will effectively shut down the industry that has attracted so much opprobrium in recent months for unethical and criminal practices.

This now cleared for second and third readings in the plenum, where it is expected to pass, and then go into effect three months from the day it is published in the Official Gazette.

The bill arms the ISA with some additional enforcement powers, and offenders will be liable to prosecution under the Prohibition of Money Laundering Law. This is because of the criminal characteristics that tend to be associated with such trading.

Superintendent Gabi Biton, who commands the Israel Police Money Laundering Task Force, told the committee during recent hearings that, “In the past few years the phenomenon has become a monster. There is huge movement of criminal elements from one kind of activity to another, and they have come to this as well. Crime organizations involved in this area are enriching themselves massively.”

Binary-options firms were also heard by the committee members. They argued that the cases of fraud cited did not reflect the industry as a whole, and were a matter of “rotten apples.” They said that the bill would have a harmful effect on legitimate Israeli trading and technology companies.