Focus Option is an online binary options and CFD broker that has become famous for offering a huge selection of underlying cryptocurrencies. If you want to speculate on the movements of cryptocurrencies, including more unusual ones, you should definitely give Focus Options a look.

Focus Option also offers other types of underlyings, including forex, commodities, stocks and stock indices, but their assortments for these categories are not huge. Launched in 2021, Focus Option is chiefly known as a great broker for those whose focus is cryptocurrency speculation but who also want to have access to a few other things on the side.

Just like many other brokers who still offer binary options to retail traders, Focus Option is not based in or regulated by any of the top-tier countries when it comes to retail trader protection, simply because so many of those countries have either banned or seriously restricted the sale and distribution of binary options to retail clients – or are in the process of doing so. So, going with a broker like Focus Option puts more onus on you as a trader; you will for instance not have negative balance protection, so if you decide to use leverage, it is extra important that you have your own risk-management plan in place and adhere to it.

Which cryptocurrencies can I speculate on with Focus Option?

At the time of writing, 75+ cryptos are available for speculation, and Focus Option is continuously looking for suitable cryptocurrencies, tokens and digital contracts to add to their already large offering.

Here are some examples of cryptos that you can speculate on at Focus Option at the time of writing:

  • AAVE
  • ADA
  • ATOM
  • BAT
  • BTC
  • CRO
  • DOGE
  • ETH
  • KSM
  • LINK
  • LTC
  • MANA
  • MATIC
  • MIOTA
  • RUNE
  • SOL
  • SUSHI
  • THETA
  • USDT
  • XMONEY
  • XMR
  • XRP
  • YCC
  • YFI

Which forex pairs can I speculate on with this broker?

At the time of writing, roughly two dozen forex pairs are available for speculation on the Focus Option platform. Most of them are various combinations of the seven most traded currencies on the global forex market, i.e. USD, EUR, JPY, GBP, AUD, CAD and CHF. Examples of available pairs where at least one of the currencies are a bit more exotic are NZD/USD, USD/NOK and USD/SEK.

  • AUD/CAD
  • AUD/CHF
  • AUD/JPY
  • AUD/USD
  • CAD/CHF
  • CAD/JPY
  • EUR/AUD
  • EUR/AUD
  • EUR/CAD
  • EUR/CHF
  • EUR/GBP
  • EUR/JPY
  • EUR/JPY
  • EUR/USD
  • GBP/AUD
  • GBP/CAD
  • GBP/CHF
  • GBP/JPY
  • GBP/JPY
  • NZD/USD
  • USD/CAD
  • USD/CHF
  • USD/JPY
  • USD/NOK
  • USD/SEK

How much money do I need to open an account with Focus Option?

You do not need to make any deposit at all to open a Free Demo Account and check out if you like the platform and what Focus Option has to offer. The free account is filled with play-money ($10,000) so you can make play-money trades.

When you feel ready to start with real-money trading, you only need to make a $10 deposit to get your real-money account started. The smallest possible trade is $1.

Account types at Focus Option

There are four account types at Focus Option: Bronze Account, Silver Account, Gold Account, and Platinum Account. Regardless of which account type you have, you get access to all the 140+ underlying assets, so the account levels are more about perks than gatekeeping. With a Silver, Gold or Platinum Account, you will be permitted to make larger stakes per trade than with a Bronze Account, and you will also have your deposits and withdrawals processed quicker – although, only for traditional currencies, for cryptocurrencies there is no difference. Holders of Gold Accounts and Platinum Accounts are provided with trading signals and market analysis, and get their own personal account manager assigned to them. At the Platinum Account level something happens that can actually directly impact your bottom line: you get access to bigger payouts, in some cases up to 95%. There are also VIP Events that are only open to Platinum Account holders.

Does Focus Option offer speciality accounts?

No, Focus Option does not offer speciality accounts.

Demat Account: No

DMA Account: No

ECN Account: No

LAMM Account: No

MAM Account: No

PAMM Account: No

STP Account: No

Ethical Investments Account: No

Islamic / Muslim / Sharia / Halal Account: No

Binary options

Which types of binary options are available here?

Focus Option only offers one type of binary option and that is the standard High/Low option. If your trading strategy involves other binary option types – such as boundary options, toch/no-touch or ladder – this is not the right broker for you.

Which expiry times are available?

  • 30 seconds
  • 1 minute
  • 2 minutes
  • 5 minutes
  • 15 minutes
  • 30 minutes
  • 1 hour
  • End of the day
  • 1 week

Underlying assets and products

  • More than 75 cryptocurrencies.
  • More than two dozen forex pairs.
  • Shares in over 35 different exchange-traded companies, with a focus on very large and well-known companies such as Microsoft, Tesla, Alibaba, Ebay, BMW, Volkswagen, Goldman Sachs, Intel, and Starbucks.
  • Commodities are available, but only gold, silver and crude oil. If commodity speculation is your thing, there are other brokers that are better than Focus Option.
  • Five indices: S&P 500 Futures, Dow Jones Futures, Nasdaq 100 Futures, DAX30 Futures and Ibex 35.

Contracts for Difference (CFDs)

In addition to Binary Options, Focus Option also offers Contracts for Difference (CFDs). The assortment of underlying assets is not as big as for the binary options. Leverage is available for the CFDs, but you will not get any negative balance protection.

The trading platform

Focus Option has their own proprietary platform. You can not use your Focus Option account with any of the independent third-party platforms, such as MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5) or cTrader.

The Focus Option trading platform is only available for browser-based trading, you can not download it and install it on your computer. This in turn means that it doesn´t matter if your computer is a Windows computer or not.

The Focus Option platform is easy to use and even a novice trader will quickly understand how things work. It includes tools for technical analysis, but not as much as you get with larger platforms such as the MT5. For beginners, this can actually be something positive, as it is less overwhelming. For the more experienced technical analysis trader, the platform can feel a bit too bare in this regard.

With the Focus Option platform, you will get several charting views (Japanese candlesticks, line graphs, etc) and a nice assortment of indicators (true range, pivot points, a stochastic indicator, and more).

Can I use Focus Option for copy trading?

No, this platform has no copy trading feature.

Can I use Focus Option for mobile trading?

Yes, the platform is available for touch-screen smartphones and tablets too. There is one mobile app for iOS and another one for Android. With the apps, you get access to most of the features found on the desktop version of the platform.

VPS hosting

Focus Option offers Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting.

Deposits & Withdrawals

Minimum deposit

The minimum deposit is $10 for most deposit methods. A notable exception is bank transfer, where the minimum deposit is $100.

Minimum withdrawal

The minimum withdrawal is $10 for most withdrawal methods. A notable exception is bank transfer, where the minimum withdrawal is $100.

Fees

This broker does not charge any fees for processing deposits and withdrawals.

Examples of accepted transaction methods

  • Certain credit/debit cards, including VISA, MasterCard and JCB Card
  • Certain cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Tether
  • Bank transfers
  • Boleto Bancario
  • LATAM
  • PIX
  • TED

If you want to make quick deposits and withdrawals, cryptocurrencies are usually the best choice with this broker. Crypto deposits are very fast and withdrawals are normally processed within 24 hours. Credit/debit cards are trickier, because deposits go through very fast, but withdrawals can take anywhere from 1 to 5 business days. Bank transfer normally take 1-3 days for both deposits and withdrawals.

Customer support

Customer support is only available 24/5 not 24/7. This is a bit disappointing, since trading is available 24/7 and many traders who are into cryptocurrency-speculation are active during the weekends too.

The customer support can be reached through phone, email and live chat, but getting phone support will require you to make a (potentially costly) phone call to Indonesia. The phone number is +(62) 21 2002 2012.

Email address: support@focusoption.com

Live chat: You will find the live chat support on the Focus Option web site.

Ownership and legal considerations

This broker is owned by the company Focus Option Ltd and based in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This is an island country in the Caribbean and it is not know for being strict when it comes to regulating online brokers. It does for instance not demand negative balance protection for retail clients using leverage. Consequently, you as a trader will have to shoulder more of the responsibilities and not rely on a strict regulatory body to keep you from wrecking your budget.

The registered address for Focus Option is Focus Option Ltd, First floor, First St. Vincent Bank James Street, Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Focus Option comply with anti-money laundering routines by carrying out Know-Your-Customer checks. You can be expected to verify your identity and sometimes also your home address. Your identity is verified by you sending in an image showing your passport, national ID card, driver license or other approved identification. Both sides of the card are required. For more information, contact accounts@focusoption.com.