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This page is part of the Wikinvest Guide to Options. Related articles within this guide include:

Binary Options are options that pay either a fixed amount or nothing depending on whether or not a certain condition is fulfilled when the option expires. This is unlike a regular option whose payoff is dependent on the price of the underlying asset relative to its strike price. For example: A binary option on weather would pay out a fixed amount if the temperature exceeds a threshold.

Binary option are usually structured as European options -- i.e. the holder of the option is only paid if the underlying condition is reached upon maturity. However, there are American styled binary options which are automatically exercised (i.e. pays out) as soon as the price of the underlying asset equals the strike price.

The strike price for binary option is the main determinant of the pay out. For instance, a binary call option on oil with a strike price of $80 and payout of $100,000 would pay the holder $100,000 if the price of oil upon expiration is $80 or more.

Binary options are mainly traded over the counter, however, the CBOE offers binary options on S&P 500 and VIX which traded on an exchange. Option trading websites such as HedgeStreet have also made these options more accessible to retail investors. On the other hand, most casino games and bets with bookies are technically binary options. Many insurance contracts are also designed to be binary options.

There are two popular types of binary options: cash-or-nothing options and asset-or-nothing options. With a cash-or-nothing option the holder is paid a fixed amount of money if the option is in-the-money upon expiration. An asset-or-nothing option pays the holder the value of the underlying asset if the option expires in-the-money.

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