France’s Financial Markets Authority (AMF) earlier today published a report on the risks and tendencies regarding various investment fields, with Forex and binary options being highlighted as areas involving particularly high risks of losses.
The report also sheds light on the size of losses French online traders suffered in 2014, if we consider the complaints filed with the AMF.
- Overall, the complaints that the French financial regulator received in 2014 rose 23% against 2013 levels, whereas the number of complaints lodged against Forex and binary options brokers surged 94% on an annual basis.
- The binary options represent a growing share of the complaints, whereas the Forex share of the complaints is somewhat down when compared to the preceding year.
- The 185 complaints that the AMF received in 2014 show a cumulative loss of EUR 6.5 million ($7.19 million).
- The individual losses ranged from EUR 100 to EUR 800,000, thus resulting in an average individual loss of EUR 35,100.
- The watchdog notes that a large part of the appeal of the Forex and binary options market is due to the aggressive advertising of such products. The regulator found that in 2014, 40% of all investment advertisements (mainly in online media) were dedicated to Forex, CFD and binary options products.
AMF has carried out numerous campaigns to inform investors about the risks associated with Forex and binary options trading, including a Forex mystery shopping campaign. And yet, papers like the one just published show that online traders keep pumping and losing an excessive amount of money while entering a field they have little knowledge of.
Earlier data from AMF has shown that French Forex and CFD traders lost more than EUR 161 million from 2009 to 2013.
To view the document entitled “Mapping of risks and tendencies in financial markets and savings”, click here.