IQ Option Review

IQ Option was originally started as a binary options broker dealing primarily with FX options. These services are still available but IQ Option has evolved and developed into an all-around online trading platform. IQ Option offers support for commodities, ETFs, forex, and stocks. More recently, as of 2017, they’ve entered into the cryptocurrency trading industry also.

This brokerage site is a fairly large name in the investing world. Therefore, they bring some reputability and name recognition to the crypto industry.

But does this quality reputation translate to a good cryptocurrency exchange? You can find out by reading the following IQ Option crypto review.

Payment Methods

You can deposit at IQ Option using a number of methods. One of the best parts of using IQ Option is only needing a tiny initial investment which makes it very accessible for inexperienced investors but also for those with a smaller capital. Investors only need to deposit a minimum of $10 to get started.

Here are the available banking options:

• Bank transfer
• Credit card (Visa & MasterCard)
• Neteller
• PayPal
• Skrill
• Crypto-based deposits/withdrawals

You can find a step-by-step guide to depositing funds at IQ Option on the unofficial wiki page.

Speed of Purchases

The speed at which you receive cryptocurrencies depends upon the banking option that you use. You’ll receive your crypto the fastest with credit and debit card purchases. You’ll have to wait longer when purchasing with bank transfers and e-wallets.

Fees

This site doesn’t take as large of fees as most brokerages. However, IQ Option does charge slightly more than the average cryptocurrency trading platform. IQ Options has a more complicated fee structure than most exchanges so I will go into more detail about each section.

Deposit and Trading Fees

IQ Option does not charge any trading or deposit fees. There are no fees on deposits at IQ Option. The minimum deposit amount is $10, which is well below the amount required by other comparable trading platforms.

Transaction and Commission Fees

IQ option charges little to no commission fees. A fee of 2.9% will be charged if you open a ‘long' cryptocurrency position. For example, if you invest $10 to buy Bitcoin, you will be charged 2.9% of the total so your fee for opening the position would be $0.29.

Withdrawal Fees

Withdrawals via bank transfer will cost $31 for every transaction. However, there are no withdrawal fees if you use a Payment Service Provider (PSP) to withdraw funds. These include:

• PayPal
• Skrill
• Neteller
• SOFORT
• WebMoney
• WorldPay
• EcommPay
• PPRO

Overnight Funding Fee

Also known as a ‘Swap Fee’, this will be charged on CFD positions left open overnight. This fee is set at 0.01% – 0.5% of the face value of the position and affects CFDs on forex, ETFs, cryptocurrencies, commodities and indices. This fee allows the broker to cover the costs of the leverage used overnight.

Inactivity Fee

There is a "Dormant Account Fee" with this broker. While some brokers only require that you log in to your account to keep it active, IQ Option charges a fee if an account is inactive for 90 days. If no trades are opened, pending, or executed inside 90 days, your account will be charged the €10 fee. The same amount will be charged every month afterwards if your account remains inactive.

Verification Fee

It's important to note that once you create an account with IQ Option, you submit your identification verification documents as soon as possible. If you don't submit them within 15 days after making your first deposit, all your funds (minus profits) will be returned to your account. If your balance is above €5 then you won't be charge, but if it's below €5 then you'll be charged a fee of up to €5.

Buying Limits

IQ Option features one of the highest buying limits for unverified members of any site. They allow you to purchase up to $20,000 worth of crypto with bank transfers, e-wallets, and credit cards. Assuming you achieve verified status, then you won’t be subject to any buy limits.

Does IQ Option Hold Your Funds?

In a sense, yes, IQ Option does allow you to store cryptocurrencies on their site. One problem, though, is that you can only withdraw Bitcoin (options) from the site. Therefore, you have to trade into Bitcoin if you want to make a crypto-based withdrawal.

The second problem is that you don’t actually own the cryptocurrencies in the conventional sense. Instead, you’re only purchasing the options to buy these assets.

You can’t create a wallet and fund it with an option,As a result, you have no other choice than to store your options here.

Which Coins Are Supported?

IQ Option has done a great job of expanding the number of cryptocurrencies that they support. Currently, they feature over two dozen different coins.

Here are some examples:

• Bitcoin
• Ethereum
• Ripple
• Binance Coin
• Stellar
• Tron
• IOTA
• Ontology
• Dash
• Qtum

Privacy Features

IQ Option uses SSL encryption to protect their website and your information. Therefore, hackers can’t steal your personal or financial information.This brokerage does collect information for the KYC process. However, they don’t share your email and other details with third parties.

VIP Service

IQ Option offers traders the opportunity to open a VIP account. Opening one requires you have a larger initial deposit than normal accounts. A VIP account comes with perks normal account holders don't get.

The VIP account is only available to traders residing outside the EU and North America. To qualify for the VIP account, you would need to make a minimum deposit of $1900 or have a trading volume of $15000 within a period of 3 months.

One of the most important IQ Option VIP benefits is the increased profitability offered on some assets. Higher profitability percentages can increase a trader’s chances of being a successful and profitable trader and can help mitigate some losses a trader may have.

Below is a small selection of some of the most frequently traded assets at IQ Option and the percentage increase offered by the VIP service. Bear in mind that this is not an exhaustive list so it doesn't include all the assets on which VIP clients get better rates and the assets themselves change frequently. Please check IQ Option for an up to date list.

Personal Account Manager

IQ Option VIP clients also have access to a personal account manager. These account managers are market professionals who are available to assist VIP clients 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. Trained to guide VIP clients in using the analytical tools available and utilising strategies to increase a client's profit.

Faster Processing of Withdrawal Requests

An IQ Option VIP withdrawal is usually processed within one business day! VIP clients can also contact their personal account managers to try and speed up the withdrawal process if necessary.

One-on-One Tutoring

Tutoring and training walk hand in hand and are both vital to successful trading. IQ Option VIP clients are in the privileged position to learn from adept trading specialists on a one-on-one basis.

Exclusive Training Materials

IQ Option VIP clients have access to valuable training material in the form of several trading manuals that are changed and updated frequently. Just another way to increase your knowledge and potentially your profit.

Free Trading Tournament Participation

IQ Option VIP clients have free access to most of the trading tournaments offered by IQ Option. That normally means one free registration per tournament. (re-buys are treated differently depending on the tournament).

In every tournament, only binary options can be traded. Each participant gets a tournament trading account with a set virtual balance. The entry fee is paid using this virtual balance.

The goal is to create the largest virtual balance possible. The initial virtual account balance, entry fee, prize pool and structure, and duration of the tournament vary.

Mobile App

IQ Option have produced an award-winning mobile trading platform suitable for mobile phones and tablets. Available on both IOS and Android this app gives their clients access to the full variety of assets that can be traded from a desktop. This includes currencies, indices, commodities and stocks. With IQ Option, shares of Tesla, Netflix, Spotify, Alibaba, Microsoft, Disney, oil, gold and many more assets can be traded from your mobile device whilst on the move.

You can download the iOS version here.

You can download the Android version here.

iOS version

Apple recently announced changes to the binary market in the Apple store. IQ Option quickly responded and developed a new application for iOS that meets the new rules. Compatible with iOS 9.0 and higher, the app builds on the IQ Option offering.

Forex and CFD and Cryptocurrency trading are available. The speed with which I was able to respond to the Apple changes was impressive. They have always been at the forefront of mobile trading development. This new offering will be unique within the Apple store until other brands catch up with the new rules.

Android App

The mobile app maintains the simplicity of the trading area on the website, and retains the split second charting that makes trading binaries viable. The layout is incredibly clear, and can be tailored to suit the needs of individual traders.

In addition to the trading facilities, there are also features to maintain account details, including the ability to request withdrawals from the mobile app. The team developed their mobile offering in-house and the attention to detail is evident.

While some trading apps appear to have been purchased ‘off the shelf’ in order to tick a box, this broker has clearly spent some time and effort getting their mobile app right. The recent updates have also taken into account feedback from traders using the mobile app, and appears to be another step forward.

Note - Be sure to check the settings on the app before using it. There are several settings that may need to be changed but a very important one is "one-click trading". One-click trading means being able to execute a trade using a single click. For experienced users and those that make frequent trades this can be a beneficial tool to speed up their decisions.

The risk is for inexperienced investors that could make a trade by mistake with just a single misclick. My recommendation would be to disable this option to prevent mistakes in the future.

Which Countries Can Use IQ Option?

Most nations around the world can use this site. It offers trading accounts to users from over 213 countries. However, IQ Option does ban users from the following countries: United States, Canada, Japan, Russia, Australia, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Iran, Israel, Turkey, Spain, Latvia, North Korea, Pakistan, Palestine, Sudan and Syria.

Verification Process

IQ Option is a verified exchange and requires you to undergo Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. You’ll have to provide details such as proof of identity and address in order to qualify.

News Feed

Another feature that is useful to any traders at IQ Option is their news feed page. The news feed provides news stories related to finance and financial services from a massive selection of relevant sites around the world and then compiles it into an easy to digest snippet of the story, with the ability to expand each snippet into the full article for you to better gather information.As we all know, knowledge is power, and getting the most relevant knowledge displayed quickly and clearly has to be beneficial. You can read the news feed for yourself here.

Customer Support

The customer service team is available through email and phone. The staff collectively speaks a number of languages and can be reached 24/7. You can also consult an FAQs section to see if your question or issue is answered here.

There is also an unofficial wiki page created by fans of the platform, not IQ Option itself. It's intended to help new clients and less experienced investors get to grips with the trading platform. As well as offering useful tips and trading strategies to maximise their earnings.