Article published at FinanceFeeds.
This year is turning out to be a very difficult one for brokers.
In January, the European Union began implementing the massive Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MIFID II) program.
A few weeks later, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) started implementing a new policy on negative balance for forex brokers. The new policy asks brokers to have more capital to cover the no-negative balance guarantee.
Then came the onslaught from online giants like Google, Twitter, and Facebook. In January, Facebook was the first social network to ban ads relating to cryptocurrencies and other high risk financial products like binary options. A few days ago, Twitter followed suit and banned all ads relating to cryptocurrencies and certain CFD and options products and then along came Snapchat who did the same.
In March, Google moved to ban all cryptocurrency related ads from June 2018. It also moved to ban and place caveats for forex and CFD brokers. In the new rules, forex, binary and CFD advertisers will now require certification and some may even be ineligible.
At the same time, some online wallets have moved to restrict the transfer of funds to companies that offer such products. PayPal has banned its users from sending money to companies that provide cryptocurrencies services. In addition, companies like Visa and Mastercard have made it difficult for people to buy and sell cryptocurrencies.