Can You Trade Binary Options on Weekends? Which Instruments Move and How They Differ From Weekdays

When you get some free time on the weekend, you naturally want to spend it slowly watching the markets you can't check during a busy work week. Extended holidays like Obon are exactly that kind of chance. To get straight to the point, the only instruments you can trade in binary options on Saturday and Sunday are crypto instruments. Currency pairs don't move because the forex market is closed.

Only crypto instruments can be traded on weekends

Binary option instruments fall into four categories: currency pairs, crypto, stocks, and stock indices. Of these, only crypto keeps moving on weekends. The crypto market runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and rates keep updating regardless of the day of the week.

With Bi-Winning, you can trade around the clock on weekdays, and crypto instruments are also available for weekend trading on Saturdays and Sundays. Since you can access the markets even on weekends, this creates trading opportunities for people who struggle to find large blocks of free time on weekdays. However, since the available instruments are limited to crypto, you won't have as many choices as you do on weekdays.

Why the forex market shuts down on weekends

Forex trading runs almost 24 hours a day on weekdays because the Tokyo, London, and New York markets hand off to each other across time zones. On weekends, all three of these markets are closed. Trading ends Saturday morning and resumes Monday morning.

About instruments labeled OTC

Some instruments in the list have "OTC" in their name. Bi-Winning offers four OTC pairs: EUR/JPY, GBP/JPY, GBP/USD, and USD/JPY. OTC instruments move on rates that Bi-Winning generates using its own proprietary algorithm during the hours when the market is closed.

Because these rates aren't built up from actual buying and selling, you shouldn't assume the same technical analysis applies as on weekdays. Check whether an instrument's name includes "OTC" on the trading screen, and confirm the available trading hours before using it.

Telling what's moving on weekends apart by where the rate comes from

What tends to cause confusion in weekend trading is figuring out exactly what the rate that's currently moving represents. Whether you can apply the same analysis as on weekdays depends on where that rate is coming from. You can check the differences between instruments in the table below.

Crypto rates are built from prices actually traded on exchanges around the world. Buyers and sellers are active even on weekends, and the results feed straight into the price. The candlesticks, moving averages, and oscillator-type indicators you use on weekdays carry the same meaning on weekend crypto charts.

That said, fewer participants trade over the weekend, so price movement tends to be smaller and more contained. There's no need to change your analysis method from what you use on weekdays, but it may be wise to target a more modest price range.

Instruments you can trade on weekends with Bi-Winning

Bi-Winning offers 15 crypto instruments, including major names like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and Litecoin. On weekends, you choose from this lineup.

Demo trading is also available on weekends. The demo screens for currency pairs and stocks stay frozen with no chart movement, so you cannot demo-trade those on weekends.

How the market's character changes by day of the week, and how it connects to the weekend

It's best to treat weekend trading as separate from weekday market conditions. Looking at the week as a whole, what's commonly thought of as "the weekend" runs from late Friday through Monday morning.

Why Monday mornings tend to be unstable

News keeps coming out worldwide even on weekends — it's only the forex rates that stop. Whatever happens over the weekend gets bundled into Monday's opening price all at once, which is what causes the gap. Since Monday mornings often lack direction and whip back and forth, it's smart to sit out the morning session if you're trading currency pairs.

If you'd like to learn more about the best trading hours, check out this article!
▶︎When Is the Best Time to Trade Binary Options? The "Danger Hours" and Market-by-Market Strategies That Raise Your Win Rate

Why you should avoid the tail end of Friday

Late on Fridays, settlement activity piles up from participants who don't want to hold positions into the weekend. This tends to produce sharp, directionless moves, and technical patterns often break down as a result.

If you'd like to know which economic indicators to watch in binary options, check out this article
▶︎What Economic Indicators Should You Watch in Binary Options? An Easy Guide to Key Indicators and Their Release Schedules

Three things to check before trading on the weekend

You can decide for yourself whether to trade on the weekend by checking these three things.

Confirm whether the moving rate reflects the real market

The first thing to look at is the instrument name. For crypto instruments, the price shown reflects actual trades on the market, while instruments with "OTC" in the name show a rate generated by the broker. If you want to use the same approach on weekends as you do on weekdays, stick to crypto instruments that trade on real market rates.

Match your expiry time to weekend price movement

With fewer participants over the weekend, each candlestick's price range tends to be smaller than on weekdays. If your expiry time is too short, you end up picking up directionless noise and leaving the outcome to chance. Set it too long, on the other hand, and the price may move in your favor and then reverse, putting it back near its starting point right at expiry.

Rather than fixing your expiry time, decide it fresh each time based on the range of recent candlesticks. If the one-minute candles barely show any real body, avoid using a short expiry time.

If you want to reconsider the combination of indicators you use to decide, check out this article!
▶︎Recommended Binary Options Indicators: Combinations and How to Choose Them for Beginners

End the weekend without letting Monday's gap carry over into your decisions

In binary options, the result is locked in the moment the expiry time arrives. Unlike FX, you never carry a position over into the following week, so there's no need to worry about an unrealized loss ballooning because of a gap. That's one reassuring aspect of trading over the weekend.

That said, whatever moved over the weekend shows up in Monday's currency pairs. If you apply your read on the weekend crypto market directly to Monday's currency pairs, you'll likely misjudge the direction. Treat weekend trading as something that's finished by the weekend, and start fresh by reassessing the market again on Monday.

Points to watch out for in weekend trading

Crypto over the weekend tends to struggle to sustain a trend and spends more time moving back and forth in a narrow range, so it doesn't suit trades that target a big directional move. Spreads also tend to widen when price movement is light, and orders can sometimes fail to go through when volatility is low. Treat the weekend not as a time to trade more, but as a time to pick up only the setups where conditions line up.

What you can and can't do on weekends

Here's how far you can get on weekends, including procedures beyond just trading.

Weekends during long holidays like Obon or the year-end and New Year period

During long holidays, people spend more time at home and often watch the markets more over the weekend. What's worth keeping in mind here is that Japanese public holidays and globally shared market closures are two different things.

During Obon or Japanese public holidays, overseas markets still operate as usual, so on weekdays you can trade both currency pairs and stock indices. On the other hand, on days when major markets around the world close at the same time, such as Christmas or the New Year holidays, fewer instruments are available for trading even on weekdays. Weekends during long holiday periods work the same as ordinary weekends, with crypto instruments as the only option.

Frequently asked questions about weekend trading in binary options

Q1. Can I demo trade on weekends too?

Yes, for crypto instruments. Currency pairs and stocks show no price movement because the market is closed, so demo trading isn't available for those either. Bi-Winning's demo account can be used without registration.

Q2. If I request a withdrawal on the weekend, when will the funds arrive?

Withdrawal processing counts as 2–5 business days. Since weekends don't count as business days, requests made over the weekend are processed starting the following week. If you're in a hurry, it's best to submit your request on a weekday.

Q3. Can I open an account on weekends too?

Yes, you can. Since the process is completed entirely online, you can proceed regardless of the day of the week. After opening an account, you can start trading crypto instruments right away, even on a weekend.

Q4. Is it easier to win on weekends than on weekdays?

No, it doesn't get easier. Since fewer instruments are available, your options are also more limited, so it's smart not to aim for the same number of trades as you would on a weekday.

Summary

In binary options, crypto instruments are the ones you can trade even on weekends. Currency pairs and stocks stop moving because the market is closed. On weekends, check the instrument name to confirm where the rate comes from, set your expiry time to match the thinner price movement, and avoid letting Monday's gap carry over into your decisions. Keeping the character of each day of the week in mind lets you judge everything from how Friday winds down to how Monday opens from the same perspective.

Why not see what weekend price movement looks like for yourself? With demo trading, you can try it right now with crypto instruments.