Legislation Regulations 26/05/2016 Regulation of 26 May 2016 of the Financial Services and Markets Authority governing the distribution of certain derivative financial instruments to consumers, approved by the Royal Decree of 21 July 2016 (pdf - 843.06 KB) Files reglem_26-05-2016_en.pdf (pdf - 843.06 KB) 03/04/2014 Regulation of 3 April 2014 of the Financial Services and Markets Authority on the ban on the distribution of certain financial products to retail clients, approved by the Royal Decree of 24 April 2014(pdf - 7.79 KB) Files reglem_24-04-2014.pdf (pdf - 7.79 KB) Circulars, communications and handbook Communications 22/11/2022 FSMA_2022_25 Classification of crypto-assets as securities, investment instruments or financial instruments(pdf - 666.83 KB) Files Classification of crypto-assets as securities, investment instruments or financial instruments (pdf - 666.83 KB) 13/11/2014 FSMA_2014_13 Communication to companies that distribute investments in movable or immovable goods(pdf - 511.84 KB) Files fsma_2014_13.pdf (pdf - 511.84 KB) (update 17 April 2018) Questions and answers (FAQ) FSMA Regulation governing the distribution of certain derivative financial instruments (binary options, CFDs, etc.) 1. Why this Regulation? 2. What is prohibited under the Regulation? 3. When did the Regulation enter into force? 4. Why is the distribution of binary options and derivative contracts with a maturity of less than an hour prohibited? 5. Why is the distribution of derivative products with leverage (such as CFDs and forex products) prohibited? 6. Whom does the Regulation apply to? Does it also apply to foreign providers? 7. Does the prohibition apply to all forms of distribution of derivatives? 8. Does distribution within the framework of the Regulation require that a minimum number of investors be approached? 9. What do we understand by 'distribution in Belgium'? 10. Does this Regulation mean that from now on no Belgian can 'speculate' on binary options or forex instruments? 11. What happens to existing trading accounts held by Belgians who are clients of an online platform distributing its instruments in Belgium? 12. Can providers still distribute derivatives to legal persons? 13. How will the FSMA enforce the provisions of the Regulation? 14. What can victims of unlawful activities relating to binary options or forex instruments do to recover their losses? 15. Does the Regulation mean that consumers no longer have any way to hedge against certain risks by means of derivatives? 16. Does the Regulation apply to share option plans? 17. Have any other European countries introduced such a prohibition? Are there any other European countries that plan to do so?
