OptionTrade was launched in 2013 as the dedicated binary options brand of the well-established forex and commodities broker HF Markets (Cyprus) Ltd, which at the time operated primarily as HotForex. The platform was regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) through its parent company. OptionTrade offered a proprietary web-based trading platform for binary options on various assets, including currencies, commodities, indices, and stocks. The company ceased operations in December 2017, a decision that coincided with increasing regulatory pressure and an eventual ban on binary options for retail clients by European regulators (ESMA).