Often in reviews of a particular binary options broker you can hear: “the broker closed my trade at a loss by just one point...”. Does this mean that the broker is a scammer, or is there another explanation? Let's find out in this article.
Contents:
- Why can a deal close at minus one point?
- Quote providers;
- OTC quotes;
- Trading through “black” brokers;
- How to check quotes from binary options brokers;
- Quotes from reliable brokers: verification using specific examples;
- Pocket Option;
- Quotex;
- Binarium;
- Deriv;
- Conclusion.
Why Can a Deal Close at Minus One Point?
Quite a few traders have found themselves in a situation where a trade, even with an honest binary options broker, closed in the red by just one point. This outcome is frustrating, and if it happens several times, it is easy to conclude that the broker is fraudulent and deliberately closing trades at a loss. These are the kinds of conclusions you often see both on other platforms and on our forum:
In reality, however, this is rarely the case — in 99% of situations, the broker is not at fault. Moreover, the opposite often happens too: a trade closes one point in profit. In that case, traders don't accuse the broker of manipulating quotes.)
There are three main reasons for this kind of outcome:
- different quote providers;
- OTC quotes;
- trading through “black” brokers.
Quote Providers
Every reliable binary options broker receives quotes from a specific provider, and it is rare for two different brokers to use the same liquidity provider. This is why a trade can close one point in the red on one platform, even though it would have closed in profit on another.
The most popular liquidity providers are:
- MetaTrader 4/5 (MetaQuotes);
- SaxoTrader;
- Integral;
- CQG;
- LMAX;
- Rithmic;
- Currenex.
MetaQuotes — the company behind the well-known MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms — works with the following liquidity providers (any of which a broker may select as its quote source):
And this is not an exhaustive list — there are also smaller, lesser-known companies whose services binary options brokers may use.
OTC Quotes
OTC quotes are over-the-counter prices, and each broker has its own algorithm for generating them on weekends and public holidays. These prices are not real market prices, and trading on them bears only a superficial resemblance to regular trading — neither fundamental nor technical analysis can be meaningfully applied. Any analysis can technically be performed, but whether it produces results will be largely a matter of chance.
To see how real prices differ from OTC, you can look at the same currency pair at the same time — real quotes in MT4 versus OTC quotes in Pocket Option:
| MT4 | MT5 |
 |
 |
The difference is immediately apparent — the two charts move in opposite directions. So if your trade closed at a one-point loss, check whether you were trading on OTC quotes.
Since we are on the topic of brokers, let's now take a closer look at the quotes offered by different binary options brokers and trading platforms, including fraudulent ones.
Trading Through “Black” Brokers
In rare cases, a trade may close at a loss by just one or a few points because the broker is fraudulent and is manipulating its quotes while presenting them as real market prices.
A clear example is Stars Binary. We strongly recommend reviewing their profile — they present themselves as a legitimate company, but are not. One of the most blatant cases of quote manipulation, flagged by one of our users, is shown in the image below:
The overall price movement structure is preserved, but look closely at individual candles — they differ completely from the real ones.
Such price manipulation is less common today, but these companies do still exist. Always research a broker thoroughly before trading with them.
How to Check Binary Options Broker Quotes
There are several ways to verify a broker's quotes. For example, MetaQuotes maintains its own historical quote archive for each currency pair, which can be downloaded directly.
In the MetaTrader 4/5 terminal, pressing the F2 key opens a window where you can select a currency pair and download the price history for any time frame. MetaQuotes saves quotes on a weekly basis, at the end of each week.
Quotes are downloaded directly from the company's servers, so it does not matter which broker you use. The exception is Alpari, which maintains its own separate quote archive.
An easier alternative is to use the TradingView platform or our live chart. No downloads are required, and you can compare quotes with any broker without switching between terminals. Simply add the desired currency pair by clicking the “plus” button in the asset panel:
In the window that opens, search for the desired currency pair and select it:
Quotes from Reliable Brokers: Checking with Specific Examples
Should a trusted broker be considered a scammer simply because a trade closed one point in the red? Absolutely not. The simplest proof is that trades also frequently close one point in profit — and in those cases, traders have no complaints. Yet when the opposite occurs, the broker gets blamed for manipulation.
To verify quotes, let's look at some of the most popular binary options brokers:
- Pocket Option;
- Quotex;
- Binarium;
- Deriv.
Pocket Option
Pocket Option offers both exchange-traded and OTC quotes, so always pay attention to which type you are using — trading on OTC quotes can result in losses that have nothing to do with broker manipulation. You can identify whether an asset is exchange-traded or OTC by checking for the relevant label:
If you incurred a loss due to a platform error, this scenario is covered in the Pocket Option regulations:
So if you received a one-point loss caused by a platform error, Pocket Option will either refund the amount to your account or adjust the quotes accordingly.
To be certain, let's compare the EUR/USD price on Pocket Option against a quote provider (FXCM) using the method described above:
As you can see, the prices are identical.
Quotex
Quotex also offers both exchange-traded and OTC trading. Distinguishing between asset types is straightforward — they are displayed as follows:
Quotex was the broker mentioned in the complaint at the beginning of this article, so let's check its quotes:
The price difference is only 0.00004 pips, which equals a 0.004% discrepancy — well within acceptable range.
Binarium
Binarium also offers OTC trading, but only on weekends (Saturday and Sunday), so trading at exchange prices during the week should not be an issue. We compared its quotes as well, and here are the results:
The difference is just 0.00003 pips, corresponding to a 0.003% discrepancy.
Deriv
Deriv has taken the OTC concept further by giving traders access to synthetic assets with randomly generated prices. There are currently twenty-two such assets available on Deriv, and they look like this:
Exercise caution when trading these assets — outcomes are unpredictable, and trades can easily close one point in the red, even several times in a row.
As for EUR/USD and exchange-traded prices, we checked those too:
The quote discrepancy is 0.00005 pips, equal to a 0.005% difference.
Conclusion
To summarize: a trade closing one point in the red does not mean the broker is a scammer. This is confirmed by the straightforward checks above — checks that any trader can run independently at any time.
Always pay attention to the type of quotes you are trading on. If you are using OTC quotes, your trades can easily close at a loss, since these prices follow no market logic and are generated algorithmically.
One final piece of advice: always verify a broker's quotes before funding a live account. If a broker is manipulating prices, it will be immediately apparent.
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