The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) has flashed its regulatory teeth again, warning against another unauthorized binary options broker that seeks to lure investors from the Canadian province.
In its announcement, dated March 3, 2015, the regulator says that UK Options is not registered to provide any sort of investment services in British Columbia. Bear in mind that this Canadian province treats binary options as securities and demands all providers of trading with these instruments to obtain necessary authorization.
But the problems of UK Options appear to be even bigger than a lack of authorization in British Columbia. The website (https://ukoptions.com) of the binary options broker shows no information on any licenses whatsoever. It provides an address of a parent company in London named Worldwide Tech Limited, which, however, is not registered with the Financial Conduct Authority.
The traces lead to Smartech Limited, a parent company of Worldwide Tech Limited, with an address in St Vincent.
The absence of any license, however, does not prevent UK Options from boasting the title “investment house”.
In concluding its announcement, the BCSC urges residents of the province to exercise caution when dealing with firms that are not registered to trade or advise in BC.
The full text of BCSC’s warning can be read here.