Lee Elbaz

What the public record shows

Lee Elbaz was CEO of Yukom Communications, an Israel-based company that ran the binary- options websites BinaryBook and BigOption. She was convicted by a jury in August 2019 of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud, and sentenced to 22 years in prison with $28 million in restitution. The scheme cost investors more than $145 million worldwide. This is a criminal conviction — not an allegation.

The scheme — how binary-options fraud works

According to the Department of Justice, Elbaz — who called herself a “money-making machine” — trained employees to lie to investors and rig the odds against them:

• “Binary options” were pitched as simple bets on whether an asset would rise or fall by a deadline — but the platform was designed so customers lost.
• Salespeople used fake names, fake qualifications, and claimed to be in London while operating elsewhere.
• They falsely “guaranteed” returns up to 40% and used terms like “bonuses,” “risk- free trades,” and “insured trades” to make losses feel impossible.
• When customers tried to withdraw, the money was gone.

Why we rate this 1 / 10 — Avoid

A jury conviction and a 22-year sentence for one of the largest binary-options frauds ever prosecuted. Binary options marketed by unregistered offshore “brokers” are, as a category, overwhelmingly fraudulent — regulators worldwide have banned or restricted them for retail investors.

Red flags this case teaches

• Unregistered offshore “brokers” cold-contacting you about a fast, simple trade.
• “Risk-free,” “insured,” “guaranteed” returns — none of which exist in real trading.
• Withdrawal problems — the universal end stage of these scams.

Bottom line

Convicted and serving 22 years. If an offshore platform offers guaranteed, “risk-free” binary-options or FX returns and makes withdrawals difficult, it’s not a broker — it’s a trap.

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