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Austria’s Financial Market Authority (FMA) issued separate investor warnings against DAX-300 (ELRICS Brothers Ltd.) and TorOption (Smart Choice Zone LP) in September 2019.
The notices said that neither named provider was authorised to carry out licence-required banking transactions in Austria. These are archived regulatory warnings—not new notices issued in 2026—and they do not, by themselves, amount to criminal convictions or court findings that every transaction was fraudulent.
What the Austrian FMA warned about
The FMA published the warnings in Austria’s official gazette, the Amtsblatt zur Wiener Zeitung, and retains them in its online warning archive.
| Provider | Entity named by the FMA | Warning date | FMA finding |
|---|---|---|---|
| DAX-300 | ELRICS Brothers Ltd. | September 6, 2019 | Not authorised to conduct commercial trading in Austria requiring a licence under Article 1 paragraph 1 number 7 of the Austrian Banking Act (BWG). |
| TorOption | Smart Choice Zone LP | September 10, 2019 | Not authorised to conduct commercial trading in Austria requiring a licence under Article 1 paragraph 1 number 7 of the BWG. |
In practical terms, the regulator was telling Austrian investors that the providers did not hold the authorisation required for the activity identified in the notices. A website, company name, foreign address or customer-support telephone number is not a substitute for checking the relevant financial-services register.
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DAX-300: details in the 2019 warning
The FMA identified the business as DAX-300 (ELRICS Brothers Ltd.). Its notice recorded the following contact details:
- Address: Suite 305, Griffith Corporate Centre, Beachmont, Box 1510, Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines
- Website:
www.dax-300.com - Email:
[email protected] - Telephone:
+44 20 80891542
These details are historical information copied from the FMA’s September 6, 2019 notice. They should not be treated as confirmation that the domain, email address, telephone number or company is still operating or controlled by the same people.
The name DAX-300 should also not be confused with an official German DAX index or with a regulated exchange-traded product that happens to use an index-related name. The FMA warning does not establish that DAX-300 was an official DAX index provider.
TorOption: details in the 2019 warning
The second notice named TorOption (Smart Choice Zone LP) and recorded:
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- Address: 272 Bath Street, Glasgow, Scotland, G2 4JR
- Website:
www.toroption.co - Email:
[email protected] - Telephone:
+44 2035192667 - Additional telephone:
+44 2030311057
As with DAX-300, this is the information recorded in the September 10, 2019 warning. It is not evidence that those contact details remain current.
TorOption had also been flagged by overseas regulators
The Austrian warning was not the first regulatory notice involving TorOption or Smart Choice Zone LP.
- On May 9, 2017, the British Columbia Securities Commission said TorOption claimed to be based in Glasgow, operated an online binary-options platform and was not registered to trade or provide securities advice in British Columbia.
- On May 1, 2018, Québec’s Autorité des marchés financiers warned that TorOption was not registered with the AMF and was not authorised to solicit Québec investors. The notice also identified Smart Choice Zone LP as another business name.
Those notices provide additional regulatory history, but they do not expand the precise legal finding made by Austria’s FMA. The Austrian regulator’s statement concerned the lack of authorisation for the specified licence-required activity in Austria.
Why Austria’s product rules matter
Austria’s FMA Product Intervention Regulation entered into force on May 15, 2019, and applied from May 30, 2019. It covered binary options and contracts for difference (CFDs) marketed, distributed or sold in or from Austria.
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For retail clients, the regulation prohibited the marketing, distribution and sale of binary options except in narrowly defined circumstances. It also imposed restrictions on the distribution of CFDs. This was relevant regulatory context in September 2019, when the two warnings were issued.
However, the individual FMA warning pages do not expressly classify DAX-300 or TorOption by product type. It would therefore be inaccurate to describe the Austrian notices themselves as findings that either business was a “binary-options scam.” That wording would require separate supporting evidence.
What the warnings do—and do not—prove
An investor warning is a regulatory notice about unauthorised activity. It is important, but its legal meaning should not be overstated.
The two notices establish that, on their respective publication dates, the named providers were not authorised for the specified licence-required banking activity in Austria. They do not state:
- how much money investors may have lost;
- that every person associated with either business committed a criminal offence;
- that the FMA ordered compensation or restitution;
- that the providers were operating beyond the unauthorised activity described in the notices; or
- that the listed websites and contact details remained active after 2019.
The absence of an FMA warning is not proof that an investment firm is reputable either. Investors should independently verify authorisation using the regulator’s current register and check whether the specific service being offered is covered by that authorisation.
What to do if you were contacted by DAX-300 or TorOption
- Stop sending money. Do not make another deposit to unlock a withdrawal, pay tax, cover a processing charge or meet a supposed minimum balance.
- Preserve evidence. Save account statements, payment confirmations, emails, chat logs, telephone numbers, website addresses and screenshots. Keep the original files where possible.
- Contact your payment provider promptly. Ask your bank, card issuer or payment service whether a transfer recall, card dispute or other recovery process is available. There is no guarantee of recovery, and speed matters.
- Secure your accounts. Change passwords if you shared login details, enable two-factor authentication and tell your bank if the provider obtained identity or payment information.
- Report the matter. Contact the Austrian FMA and local law-enforcement authorities. A report creates a record even if recovery is uncertain.
- Be wary of recovery offers. People who have already lost money are often targeted by supposed lawyers, investigators or recovery agents asking for an upfront fee. Verify any claimed authority independently.
The current-status point
The accurate present-tense summary is: Austria’s FMA issued warnings on September 6 and September 10, 2019, stating that DAX-300 and TorOption, respectively, were not authorised to conduct licence-required banking transactions in Austria.
That wording matters. The notices are archived 2019 warnings, not newly issued warnings. They do not confirm that either website is active today, and they do not provide a current assessment of the businesses.
Anyone considering a financial platform should check the current FMA warning database and authorisation register before depositing money. A familiar-looking website, a UK telephone number or a Glasgow mailing address does not establish UK or Austrian regulation.
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FAQ
Did Austria’s FMA declare DAX-300 and TorOption guilty of fraud?
No. The FMA warnings said the named providers were not authorised to conduct specified licence-required banking transactions in Austria. An investor warning is not, by itself, a criminal conviction or court finding of fraud.
When did the FMA issue the warnings?
The warning against DAX-300 (ELRICS Brothers Ltd.) was issued on September 6, 2019. The warning against TorOption (Smart Choice Zone LP) followed on September 10, 2019.
Was TorOption regulated in the United Kingdom because it listed a Glasgow address?
No. A Glasgow address does not prove authorisation. The FMA warning said TorOption was not authorised for the specified activity in Austria, while earlier Canadian regulatory notices also raised registration concerns.
Does the warning prove that DAX-300 was an official DAX index provider?
No. The name DAX-300 should not be treated as evidence of a connection to Germany’s DAX index or to a regulated index product.
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What should I do if I cannot withdraw money from one of these platforms?
Stop sending additional funds, preserve all communications and payment records, contact your bank or card provider immediately about available recovery or dispute procedures, and report the matter to the relevant regulator and law-enforcement authority. Be cautious of anyone promising recovery for an upfront fee.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Austria’s FMA warned in September 2019 that DAX-300 and TorOption were not authorised to carry out the specified licence-required banking activity in Austria. The warnings are serious regulatory red flags, but they should be described precisely: they are archived notices about authorisation, not proof on their own of criminal fraud, investor losses or the platforms’ current status.
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