Prop Firm Rules
In proprietary trading, knowing each firm’s specific rules is key to succeeding. These rules, which differ a lot across the industry, help manage risk and keep trading stable. This guide will give you a full look at the main rules for different prop firms. Use it to compare policies and find the firm that best aligns with your trading style.
Max Drawdown:
- Two-Step Challenges: 9% static drawdown.
- One-Step Challenges: Choose between 9% trailing or 6% fixed drawdown.
- Instant Program: 6% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- 4% static daily loss for all programs.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Classic Model: Varies by account size (typically 3-5 days).
- Endurance Model: Requires a set number of Profitable Days (typically 3-5 days).
- Consistency & Instant Models: None.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. No time limit.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Metals, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Allowed, but with a specific profit restriction. Profits from trades benefiting from a price gap greater than 0.2% will be removed if the trade was placed during news, over a weekend, or near market closures.
Weekend Holding:
- Allowed, subject to the gap trading rule mentioned above.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed, but only between the trader’s own accounts (across personal, other prop firms, or PipFarm accounts). Copying other traders is strictly prohibited.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed. Platforms like cTrader Automate and other automated tools are permitted. FIX API is not supported.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Multiple Challenge Styles: The choice between Classic, Endurance, and Consistency models allows traders to pick a ruleset that best fits their trading style.
- Gap Profit Removal: A unique rule that specifically targets profits made from large price gaps around high-risk periods.
- Instant Program Rules: Features a 2% max risk per trade (soft breach) and requires traders to meet a 25% consistency score and 3% minimum profit to request a payout.
- Anti-Exploit Rule: Prohibits “gaming” the rules, such as using partial closes to meet profitable day or consistency targets artificially.
- Inactivity Rule: Your account will be disabled if inactive for 28 days.
Max Drawdown:
- Alpha Pro/ Swing/ Three: 10% static drawdown.
- Alpha One: 6% trailing drawdown. (This is a key distinction).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Alpha Pro/ Swing/ Three: 5% static daily loss.
- Alpha One: 3% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- No minimum trading days.
Trading Days:
- No time limit.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, and Commodities.
News Trading:
- Evaluation Phase: Allowed without restrictions.
- Funded Phase (Qualified Analyst):
- Alpha Swing: Yes, but trades opened in the 4-minute news window must be held for over 2 minutes.
- Alpha Pro: Restricted 2 minutes before/after news.
- Alpha One/ Alpha Three: Restricted 5 minutes before/after news.
Weekend Holding:
- Alpha Swing: Allowed.
- All Other Programs: Restricted.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed but with restrictions. Copying between your own accounts is permitted. Using third-party signal services that place identical trades for multiple users is forbidden.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed, provided they do not engage in prohibited strategies like HFT or arbitrage.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Average Trade Duration Rule: A strict rule requiring that the average duration of all trades must exceed 2 minutes. At least half of the payout must come from trades held over 2 minutes.
- Lot Size Limits (Funded Accounts): Strict maximum open lot sizes are enforced on funded accounts, which vary by account type and size (e.g., Swing accounts have lower limits).
- Drawdown Adjustment (Alpha One): After reaching 6% profit, the trailing drawdown freezes. However, withdrawing the entire profit buffer will result in account closure.
- Risk Management Clause: A policy prohibiting consistent losses or risk of 3.5-5% on a single trade idea.
- Inactivity Rule: The account will be deactivated after 30 days of inactivity (login is required).
- Order Block Spamming: Prohibits entering numerous orders in a very short time frame.
Max Drawdown:
- Two-Step (Next Gen & Swing): 10% static drawdown.
- One-Step (Next Gen & Swing): 6% static drawdown.
- Instant Funding: 5% relative drawdown (trailing).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Two-Step (Next Gen & Swing): Max daily loss fixed at 5%.
- One-Step (Next Gen & Swing): 3% static daily loss.
- Instant Funding: 5% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Next Gen Evaluation: Varies by account size (e.g., 1 day for $100K, 7 days for $200K).
- Swing Evaluation: 4 trading days.
- Funded Accounts (All types): 1 trading day.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited for all programs.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading Allowed:
- Next Gen Challenge: Yes, but profits from trades within a 10-minute news window may be capped at 50%.
- Next Gen Funded: Strictly prohibited.
- Swing Accounts: Yes, news trading is allowed, but profits from trades opened 5 minutes before news will be deducted.
- Instant Accounts: Rules may vary; typically restricted.
Weekend Holding:
- Next Gen & Instant: Prohibited
- Swing Accounts: Allowed
Copy Trading:
- Allowed between Next Gen and Swing accounts.
- Permitted from an external source to one Funding Traders account.
- Prohibited between Instant Funding accounts.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Restricted. Only EAs for risk or trade management are permitted.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Program-Specific Rules: Extremely distinct rules for News Trading and Copy Trading depending on whether you choose Next Gen, Swing, or Instant models.
- Consistency Score: A rule limiting your best trading day’s profit to a percentage of the total profit before payout is allowed.
- Next Gen: 25% consistency rule.
- Instant: 20% consistency rule.
- Payout Account Reset (Next Gen): The account balance is reset to its initial value after a payout, which can affect drawdown buffers.
- Inactivity Rule: At least one trade must be placed every 21 days on funded accounts.
- Minimum Profit for Withdrawal (Swing): Must generate at least 1% profit on the account before a withdrawal can be requested.
Max Drawdown:
- Two-Step: 10% static drawdown.
- One-Step: 6% static drawdown.
- Instant Funding: 5% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Two-Step: 5% static daily loss.
- One-Step: 4% static daily loss.
- Instant Funding: 3% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- No minimum trading days.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. There are no time limits.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Allowed, but with restrictions on funded accounts.
- Allowed without limits during the evaluation phases.
- You can’t trade on funded accounts within 5 minutes before or after high-impact news.
Weekend Holding:
- You can keep trades open on weekends.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed. Copying trades between your own Aqua Funded accounts is allowed. Using third-party signal services is prohibited.
EA/Bot Trading Allowed:
- Allowed, with restrictions against exploitative bots (e.g., HFT, arbitrage).
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Wave Stop (Funded Accounts): A soft breach rule where a 2% floating loss auto-closes all positions.
- 1st breach: Profit split is reduced to 50%.
- 2nd breach: The account is fully terminated.
- This does not apply to Instant Funding accounts.
- Program-Specific Consistency Rules: A payout can only be requested if your single best trading day does not exceed a certain percentage of total profits.
- Instant Funding Standard: 40% rule.
- Instant Funding Pro: 15% rule.
- One-Step Pro: 25% rule.
- Strategy Consistency: You cannot use one strategy to pass the evaluation and then switch to a completely different one on the funded account.
- Max Loss Per Trade Policy: A specific policy limiting the maximum allowable loss on a single trade, which can lead to a hard breach.
- Inactivity Rule: The account will be deactivated after 30 days of no trading activity.
Max Drawdown:
- One-Phase: 6% trailing drawdown.
- Two/Three-Phase: 10% static drawdown.
- Instant Funding: 5% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- One-Phase: 5% static daily loss.
- Two/Three-Phase: 5% static daily loss.
- Instant Funding: 4% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- One/Two/Three-Phase: 5 trading days required.
- Instant Funding: None.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. There is no time limit.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities, and Cryptocurrencies. (Crypto trading has some restrictions on Instant accounts).
News Trading:
- Challenge Accounts (All Phases): Permitted.
- Instant Funding Accounts: Trading is prohibited 5 minutes before and after high-impact news.
Weekend Holding:
- Allowed. Weekend holding is generally permitted, but crypto cannot be traded over the weekend on Instant accounts.
Copy Trading:
- Challenge accounts can transfer funds between FXIFY or to/from external accounts (a trading statement may be needed).
- Instant Funding Accounts: Copy trading is not allowed.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Challenge Accounts: Allowed, permitted on MT4/MT5 platforms.
- Instant Funding Accounts: Prohibited. EAs are not permitted.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Withdrawal Lock Rule: After you withdraw, your drawdown limit is based on the new balance. Withdrawing too much can cause you to hit the limit and lose the account.
- KYC Compliance: Mandatory KYC verification is required through FXIFY and their payment provider (Rise) before account activation.
- Multiple Profile Prohibition: Strictly forbids a single user from creating multiple profiles.
- Inactivity Rule: Accounts are terminated after 60 days of inactivity.
- Special Payout Methods: Offers Crypto payouts for users in Ukraine and Bank Wire for users in specific US states where their primary payment processor is unavailable.
Max Drawdown:
- Default: 10% Relative Drawdown (trailing).
- Add-on: A Static Drawdown (balance-based) can be purchased as a paid add-on for accounts on the ThinkTrader platform.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Yes, 5% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- There’s no minimum number of trading days required.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. There is no time limit.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Not allowed, unless an add-on is purchased.
- By default, opening or closing trades is prohibited within a 2-minute window of high-impact news.
- A “News Trading Add-on” can be purchased to remove this restriction.
Weekend Holding:
- You can keep trades open on weekends.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed. Copying trades between your own accounts is generally permitted. Using third-party signal providers that place identical trades for many users is prohibited.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed, with restrictions against HFT or arbitrage bots.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Paid Add-Ons: Key features such as static drawdown and unrestricted news trading are not standard and must be purchased as separate add-ons.
- Margin Level Rule: A unique requirement where the account’s margin level must be kept above 150% to avoid a breach. This restricts over-leveraging.
- No Excessive Scalping: A rule prohibiting 50% or more of a trader’s total trades from being held for less than one minute.
- Anti-Gambling Policies: Strictly forbids “one-sided bets,” “all-in” behavior, and other trading patterns deemed to be gambling rather than strategic trading.
- Inactivity Rule: The account will be suspended if no trades are placed within 30 days.
Max Drawdown:
- 10% static drawdown for all account types (Instant and Challenge).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Instant Funding has no daily drawdown rule.
Minimum Trading Days:
- No minimum trading days required for all programs.
Trading Days Allowed:
- Unlimited. There are no time limits.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Metals, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Not allowed, unless an add-on is purchased.
- Trading during high-impact news is prohibited by default.
- Traders can purchase a “Major News Trading” add-on at checkout to be exempt from this rule.
Weekend Holding:
- Not allowed, unless an add-on is purchased.
- By default, all trades must be closed before the market closes on Friday.
- You can buy a “Hold Over Weekend” add-on.
Copy Trading:
- You’re allowed to copy trades between your Instant Funding accounts and other accounts.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Only EAs for risk or trade management are allowed.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Add-on Model: Many standard features (like news trading, weekend holding) are restricted by default and must be enabled by purchasing add-ons at checkout.
- No Daily Drawdown: A key feature is the absence of a daily loss limit, providing more flexibility but requiring disciplined risk management from the trader.
- VPS/VPN Prohibited: The use of a Virtual Private Server (VPS) or Virtual Private Network (VPN) is strictly forbidden.
- Martingale Strategy Allowed: The firm explicitly states that martingale strategies are permitted.
- Inactivity Rule: The account will be terminated after 60 days of inactivity.
- Unethical Trading Clause: A broad rule prohibiting latency arbitrage, tick scalping, and other exploitative methods.
Max Drawdown:
- Classic & NO ESD: 10% static overall drawdown.
- Instant GOAT: 5% static overall drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Classic & NO ESD: 5% static daily loss.
- Instant GOAT: 4% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Classic & NO ESD: 3 profitable days are required to pass each phase. A day counts as profitable if you finish with 0.5% net gain or more.
- Instant GOAT: None.
Trading Days Allowed:
- Unlimited for all programs.
Allowed Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading Allowed:
- Yes, but with a profit cap.
- Profits from trades opened or closed within 2 minutes of high-impact news are capped at 1% of the starting balance. Any extra profit is removed but won’t lead to a rule violation.
Weekend Holding Allowed:
- You’re allowed to hold trades over the weekend.
Copy Trading Allowed:
- You can copy trades between your own Goat accounts, but not to or from outside accounts.
EA/Bot Trading Allowed:
- Restricted. Only EAs for risk or trade management are allowed.
- Automated strategy EAs are not allowed.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- For the first two payouts, traders can withdraw up to 6% of their starting balance each time.
- Funded accounts have a daily profit limit, typically capped at $3,000.. Excess profits are deducted.
- Max Loss Per Trade (Instant Program): On the Instant GOAT program, you cannot risk more than 2% of your initial balance on a single trade idea. A second violation leads to account termination.
- Public Conduct Clause: A strict rule prohibiting spreading false or negative information about the firm, with penalties including a permanent ban.
- Risk Management Override: The firm reserves the right to impose a 1% risk limit per trade if they detects overly aggressive trading.
Max Drawdown:
- 10% fixed drawdown from the starting balance.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Daily loss limit is 5%, calculated from the day’s starting balance.
Minimum Trading Days:
- 5 trading days are required for each phase of the challenge.
Trading Days:
- Phase 1: 30 days.
- Phase 2: 60 days.
- No time limit on the funded account.
Allowed Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities (Metals), and Stock CFDs.
News Trading:
- Not allowed. Opening or closing trades is prohibited within a 4-minute window (2 minutes before and 2 minutes after) of high-impact news events. Triggered stop-losses or take-profits are exempt.
Weekend Holding:
- You’re allowed to hold trades over the weekend.
Copy Trading:
- Strictly prohibited between OANDA Prop Trader accounts.
- You are allowed to copy trades from your OANDA Prop Trader account to an external (non-OANDA prop) account.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed. General EAs, scripts, and indicators are permitted.
- EAs that perform arbitrage, high-frequency trading, or other exploitative strategies are forbidden.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Backed by OANDA: The program leverages the reputation and infrastructure of a major, regulated brokerage.
- Daily Max Profit Rule (Challenge Phase): A consistency rule that limits the maximum profit you can make in a single day during the evaluation.
- Phase 1: 5% max daily profit.
- Phase 2: 2% max daily profit.
- This rule doesn’t apply once you’re funded.
- Inactivity Rule: The account is terminated after 30 consecutive days of no trading activity.
- Minimum Lot Size: Requires a minimum trade size of 0.01 lots for FX/Metals and 1 lot for Indices.
Max Drawdown:
- Two-step: 10% static drawdown.
- One-step: 6% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Two-step: 5% static daily loss.
- One-step: 3% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Not allowed trading days for both One-step and Two-step challenges.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. No time limits to pass.
Allowed Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Cryptocurrencies, Indices, Metals, and Energies.
News Trading Allowed:
- Evaluation Phase: Yes, allowed without restriction.
- Funded Phase: No. You cannot open or hold trades within a 5-minute window before and after high-impact news.
- Exception: Trades opened at least 5 hours before a news event are exempt and can be held through the news.
Weekend Holding:
- You can hold trades over the weekend.
Copy Trading:
- You’re allowed to copy trades between your own Funding Pips accounts.
- Copying from an external source to a Funding Pips account is generally prohibited.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Highly restricted. Only EAs used for risk management or trade management are permitted.
- Using any third-party EA for signal generation or automated strategy execution is not allowed.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Lot Exposure Limit (Funded Accounts): Strict limits on total open lots are enforced on funded accounts (e.g., max 40 lots on a $100K account). Violating this rule leads to warnings and then account termination.
- Max Loss Per Trade Rule: On funded accounts, a single trade loss cannot exceed a specific percentage of the initial balance (often cited as 3%), which acts as a hard breach rule.
- Inactivity Rule: An account will be suspended if it remains inactive for 30 consecutive days.
Max Drawdown:
- Two Phase: 10% static drawdown.
- One Phase: 6% trailing drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Two Phase: 5% static daily loss.
- One Phase: 4% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- No minimum trading days required for any program.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Metals, Energies, Crypto, and Stocks.
News Trading:
- Allowed, but on funded accounts, trading is prohibited 5 minutes before and after high-impact news events.
Weekend Holding Allowed:
- You can hold trades over the weekend.
Copy Trading Allowed:
- You can copy trades between your own Bright Funded accounts. Using third-party signal services is prohibited.
EA/Bot Trading Allowed:
- Allowed, but with restrictions. General EAs are permitted. However, EAs designed for system exploitation, such as high-frequency trading (HFT) or arbitrage bots, are strictly prohibited.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Scaling to 100% Split: A key feature where top-performing traders can eventually keep all their profits.
- No Consistency Rule: The firm does not enforce rules on consistent lot sizing.
- Anti-Gambling Policies: Actively prohibits strategies considered to be gambling, such as consistent “one-sided bets” or habitual over-leveraging.
Max Drawdown:
- Experienced & Master Programs: 6% relative drawdown (trailing).
- Advanced Program: 10% static drawdown (based on initial balance).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Experienced and Master accounts are limited to a 3% daily loss.
- Advanced Program: 5% static daily loss.
Minimum Trading Days:
- There are no minimum trading days required for any program.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited trading days.
Allowed Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Commodities, Indices, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Allowed. News trading is permitted on all programs.
Weekend Holding:
- Weekend holding is allowed on all programs.
Copy Trading:
- Strictly prohibited between your own Funded Trading Plus accounts.
- You are allowed to copy trades from an external account (e.g., another prop firm or personal account) to your FTP account.
EA/Bot Trading:
- EAs are allowed on both cTrader and Match-Trader.
Max Number of Funded Accounts per Trader:
- Two. A trader can have a maximum of two funded accounts at any given time.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- True Instant Funding: The Master Trader Program provides a genuine instant funding account, not a demo, upon payment.
- Aggressive Scaling: The “double your account on 10% gain” is one of the fastest scaling plans in the industry.
- No Consistency Rule: The firm does not enforce consistency rules.
- Strict Anti-Gambling Rules: While flexible, they strictly prohibit strategies like holding opposing positions across your two accounts.
- Inactivity Rule: The account will be closed if inactive for 30 days.
- Platforms: Offers DXtrade, cTrader, and Match-Trader.
Max Drawdown:
- Live Trailing Threshold. This is the most critical rule.
- The drawdown trails your highest live account balance (unrealized P&L). It is calculated intraday.
- The trailing threshold stops moving up (freezes) once it reaches the initial starting balance plus $100 (e.g., $50,100 on a $50K account).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- No. Apex does not have a separate daily loss limit rule. The Live Trailing Threshold is the only drawdown rule.
Minimum Trading Days:
- You need to trade for a minimum of 7 days to pass the evaluation. The days don’t have to be in a row.
Trading Days:
- The evaluation is a monthly subscription. There is no time limit to pass as long as the subscription is active and no rules are broken.
Trading Instruments:
- CME Group Futures: All products offered by CME, COMEX, NYMEX, and CBOT are available (e.g., Equity Futures, Interest Rates, Metals, Energy, etc.).
News Trading :
- Allowed. Traders are permitted to trade during all news events.
Weekend Holding:
- All trades must be closed by 4:59 PM ET daily.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed. Traders are allowed to use trade copiers to manage their multiple Apex accounts from a single master account.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed. Automated trading systems are permitted.
Max Number of Funded Accounts per Trader:
- 20. A key feature of Apex is allowing traders to have up to 20 Performance Accounts active at the same time.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Multiple Accounts: The ability to manage up to 20 funded accounts is a major differentiator.
- No Daily Drawdown: This marketing point refers to the absence of a separate daily loss limit, but traders must be vigilant about the Live Trailing Threshold.
- Frequent Promotions: Apex is well-known for offering significant discounts (often 80-90% off) on their evaluation accounts.
- Simple Pass/Fail: The rule set is straightforward: meet the profit target in 7+ days without hitting the trailing drawdown.
- Trading Platforms: Primarily supports NinjaTrader and Tradovate, but also allows others like TradingView, Quantower, etc., through Rithmic/Tradovate connections.
Max Drawdown:
- High Stakes: 10% static drawdown.
- Bootcamp:
- During evaluation: 5% max drawdown.
- In funded stage: 4% max drawdown.
- Hyper-Growth: 6% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- High Stakes: 5% static daily loss limit.
- Bootcamp (Funded Stage): 3% daily loss limit, triggers a soft breach (trading paused for the day).
- Hyper-Growth: 3% daily pause threshold.
Minimum Trading Days:
- High Stakes: 3 profitable trading days required. A profitable day is defined as closing with a profit of at least 0.5% of the initial balance.
- Bootcamp/ Hyper-Growth: None.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Metals (Gold, Silver), and Indices.
News Trading:
- High Stakes: Prohibited within a 2-minute window before and after high-impact news.
- Allowed in Hyper-Growth & Bootcamp, but no bracket orders during news.
Weekend Holding Allowed:
- Yes, permitted across all programs.
Copy Trading Allowed:
- Allowed but with strict rules:
- Allowed from your own external account to a 5%ers account.
- Prohibited between two Bootcamp evaluation accounts.
- Third-party copy trading services are forbidden.
EA/Bot Trading Allowed:
- Allowed, with a critical condition:
- Every position opened by an EA must have a Stop Loss (SL).
- Bots using tick scalping, arbitrage, or copying trades from outside sources are not allowed.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Mandatory Stop Loss: Required for all positions in the Bootcamp program and for all trades placed by EAs across any program.
- Bootcamp Risk Violations: A maximum of 5 risk violations (e.g., opening a trade without an SL or risking >2%) will terminate the account.
- Live Funded Accounts: The 5%ers emphasize that traders are funded on a live trading account from day one post-challenge.
- Inactive accounts (no new trades for 30 days) will be closed.
Max Drawdown:
- TopTier Challenge (Regular & Swing): Fixed 10% overall drawdown.
- TopTier Challenge Plus: 12% static overall drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- TopTier Challenge (Regular & Swing) allows a fixed 5% daily drawdown.
- TopTier Challenge Plus: 6% static daily drawdown.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Each phase needs a minimum of 4 trading days.
Trading Days:
- TopTier Challenge (Regular & Swing): 40 days (Phase 1), 70 days (Phase 2).
- TopTier Challenge Plus: Unlimited, as long as each phase has ≥ 4 trading days.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities (Metals), and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Allowed during evaluation.
- Funded accounts require a paid add-on to trade high-impact news.
Weekend Holding Allowed:
- Allowed, permitted on all account types. For some challenges, this may require a free add-on at checkout.
Copy Trading Allowed:
- Not allowed. Copy trading is generally not allowed.
EA/Bot Trading Allowed:
- Allowed, but the EA must not be a high-frequency trading (HFT) bot.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- No Consistency Rule: TopTier Trader does not enforce any rules regarding consistent lot sizes or trading frequency.
- Two-tier Funded Stage: After passing the challenge, you get a “Tier 1” funded account. After scaling, you get a “Tier 2” account with the 90% profit split.
Max Drawdown:
- E8 One: Up to 14% trailing drawdown.
- E8 Classic/Track: Typically 8%–10% static drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Allowed. Varies between 3%–9%, depending on account type.
Minimum Trading Days:
- 1 trading day for E8 Evaluation and E8 Track challenges.
- No minimum trading days for funded accounts.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. There is no time limit to pass the challenges.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities (Oil, Metals), Crypto, and Equities.
News Trading:
- Evaluation accounts: Yes, news trading is allowed without restrictions.
- Funded accounts: Restricted. Trading is prohibited on instruments affected by a high-impact news event within a 5-minute window before and after the release.
Weekend Holding:
- Weekend holds are allowed.
Copy Trading:
- You can copy trades from your personal account to one E8 evaluation account only.
- Copying between multiple E8 accounts is not allowed.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Yes. However, the EA’s strategy must be unique and not a generic third-party EA used by many other traders.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Independent Evaluation Rule: Each evaluation account must be passed with a unique trading strategy.
- Payout-on-Demand Consistency: For on-demand payouts, no single trading day can account for more than 40% of the total profit.
- Trade Duration Rule: More than 50% of your trades must be held for longer than one minute.
- Risk Management Mandate: E8 reserves the right to enforce a 2% maximum risk rule per trade idea if it detects overly aggressive trading styles.
- Inactivity Rule: Your account will be deactivated if unused for 60 days.
- Server Request Limit: A technical limit of 2000 daily server requests (order modifications, SL/TP adjustments, etc.) is in place.
Max Drawdown:
- End-of-Day Trailing Drawdown.
- The drawdown trails your account’s highest profit based on the end-of-day balance, not intra-day highs. It only moves up when your account closes with a new peak balance.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Limits are $1,000 (50K), $2,000 (100K), and $3,000 (150K).
Minimum Trading Days:
- None. There is no minimum number of days required to pass the Trading Combine.
Trading Days Allowed:
- 2 days to demonstrate consistent trading before passing.
Allowed Trading Instruments:
- CME Group Futures: Equity futures (E-mini S&P 500, NASDAQ 100), Foreign Exchange futures, Agricultural futures, Energy futures (Crude Oil), Interest Rate futures, and Metals futures (Gold, Silver).
News Trading:
- Allowed, traders can hold positions during news events, but are responsible for managing the risk.
Weekend Holding:
- Prohibited. All positions must be closed by 3:10 PM CT on Friday.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed, but only between your own Topstep accounts. Copying other traders is prohibited. Live Funded Accounts cannot use the trade copier.
EAs/Bot Trading:
- You can use trading bots and automated strategies.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Futures-Focused: One of the most established firms specializing in futures contracts, not Forex/CFDs.
- Trading Platforms: Offers a wide range of platforms, including TSTrader (part of TopstepX), NinjaTrader, TradingView, and many others.
- Reset Feature: If a trader breaks a rule in the Trading Combine, they can “reset” their account for a fee without having to pay the full monthly subscription again.
- Express Funded Account: Once you pass the Trading Combine, you move on to a live simulated account where you can start earning profits. The Maximum Loss Limit rule changes slightly, freezing at the starting balance once you take a payout.
Max Drawdown:
- Stellar 2-Step & 1-Step: 10% profit target, fixed on starting balance.
- Stellar Lite: 8% (Static, based on initial balance).
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Stellar 2-Step & 1-Step: 5% (Static, based on daily starting balance).
- Stellar Lite: Fixed 4% daily drawdown, based on starting balance.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Stellar 2-Step: 5 trading days per phase.
- Stellar 1-Step: 2 trading days.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited for Stellar Challenges.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, and Commodities.
News Trading:
- Allowed, but with restrictions on funded accounts (profits made within a 5-minute window of news may be deducted).
Weekend Holding:
- Permitted.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed, only between your own FundedNext accounts, with a total capital limit of $300,000. Use of third-party copiers is restricted.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed, but the strategy must be unique. The trading method (EA vs. manual) used to pass the challenge cannot be changed on the funded account.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- 15% Profit Share: Earn 15% of the profits made during the evaluation.
- No Consistency Rule: The Stellar models do not have a consistency rule regarding lot sizes or the number of trades.
- Strategy Consistency Mandate: You cannot significantly change your trading style (e.g., asset classes, risk parameters, manual vs. EA) after passing the challenge.
- High-Risk Behavior Rule: FundedNext may enforce a 1% maximum risk per trade rule on traders flagged for overly aggressive or gambling-like behavior.
- IP Address Policy: Recommends using a single, unique IP address and personal device to avoid security flags.
- Inactivity Rule: Make at least one trade every 30 days to keep your account active.
Max Drawdown:
- Mostly static drawdown (from initial balance), except Knight Challenge which uses trailing drawdown.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- Standard, Rapid & Royal Challenge: 5% Daily Drawdown (Static).
- Knight Challenge: 4% Daily Drawdown (Static).
- Note: All drawdown rules are now static, not relative/trailing.
Minimum Trading Days:
- Standard, Royal, and Knight Challenges: 3 trading days are required in each phase.
- Rapid Challenge: 0 minimum trading days required.
Trading Days:
- Unlimited. There is no time limit to pass any of the challenges.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Commodities (Metals, Oil), Indices, and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Allowed. Traders are allowed to trade during news events on all account types. However, traders are responsible for managing potential slippage.
Weekend Holding:
- Allowed. Holding trades over the weekend is permitted on all account types.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed. Allowed between your own TFT accounts. Prohibited from third-party services.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Permitted, but with restrictions. High-Frequency Trading (HFT) EAs are strictly forbidden.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Platform Transition: Platform 5, Match-Trader, CTrader
- Add-ons: 14-day withdrawals at Royal Challenge
Max Drawdown:
- Fixed limit: 10% of your starting balance.
Daily Drawdown Limit:
- 5% of the initial account balance.
Minimum Trading Days:
- There is no minimum trading day requirement for FTMO Traders.
Trading Days Allowed:
- Unlimited. There is no maximum time limit to complete the evaluation stages.
Trading Instruments:
- Forex, Indices, Commodities (including Oil), Stocks (CFDs), and Cryptocurrencies.
News Trading:
- Restricted to standard funded accounts within a 2-minute window of high-impact news. Allowed without restriction on Swing accounts.
Weekend Holding:
- Not permitted on standard funded accounts. Allowed on Swing accounts.
Copy Trading:
- Allowed, but using third-party services where you are not the one executing the trades is forbidden.
- You’re allowed to use a copy trader to mirror trades from your own account.
EA/Bot Trading:
- Allowed. However, using off-the-shelf EAs used by many other traders may violate the rules against identical trading strategies.
Unique Features & Special Policies:
- Australian Operations: Services for Australian clients are facilitated through an affiliated entity, VRGK Tech Pty Ltd, to comply with local regulations.
- Inactivity Rule: At least one trade must be placed every 30 days to keep the account active.
- Supported platforms: MT4, MT5, cTrader, and DXtrade.
- Trader Support Tools: Provides a suite of applications like MetriX (performance dashboard), Mentor App (discipline tool), and a Trading Journal.
PipFarm Latest Updates:
- News trading is now allowed during major events.
- Inactivity rule: At least 1 closed trade every 28 days is required.
- Challenge rules:
Profit target: 12% (1-step), 9% (2-step)
Daily drawdown: 3%
Max drawdown: 9% trailing or 6% static
Instant Funding (May 2025):
- Payouts: Auto-processed every Friday after 3% profit + ≤ 25% consistency score
- Max loss: 6% trailing, resets after each payout
- Consistency rule: No single day over 25% of the total profit
Open trade risk: 2% drawdown triggers auto-close (soft breach)
Alpha Capital launches Alpha Prime – Professional Trading Desk
- Monthly salary plus live funded capital
- Trade across futures, FX, bonds, commodities
- On‑site trading floor in London or remote access
- Institutional tools and dedicated mentorship & risk support
- Participants may relocate to London
Alpha Three – 3‑Step Challenge
- News trading permitted
- Weekend holding allowed
- Leverage up to 1:50
Alpha One Plan
- Phase 1 profit target: 10%
- Max drawdown: 6% (trailing from high-water mark)
- The daily maximum drawdown is capped at 4%, calculated from the highest end-of-day balance or equity recorded
- Minimum 1 trading day required
Swing Plan – 2‑Step Evaluation
- New 2‑step assessment program designed for swing traders
Performance Bonus Update
- Now awarded after the 4th successful payout (previously 1st)
- Bonus is 0.25% of initial account balance
Qualified Account Requirements
- You must trade for at least 5 days before requesting your first payout
- A “trading day” counts when executed lot size and trade duration align with your typical trading behavior
- This does not constitute a rule breach
Alpha Pro Program – Weekend Trading Rule
- Holding trades over the weekend now triggers a soft breach, with profits reversed
- Account holders can switch to the “Swing” plan to keep trades open over the weekend.
Inactivity Rule (All Accounts)
- Each account must be active at least once every 30 days
Additional Announcements
- Alpha Futures desk has been launched
- Now accepting US-based traders
Funding Traders – Instant Funding (Updated Rules)
- Payout Schedule
- First payout: on demand
- Subsequent payouts: every 14 days
- Profit Split
- Up to 100%
- Starts at 70%, increases by 10% each payout cycle
- Drawdown Rules
- Daily drawdown (soft pause): 4% drop pauses trading, resumes next session
- Max drawdown (smart trailing): 8% total loss, trailing based on equity until 4% profit target is reached
- Consistency Requirement
- Minimum 20% “consistency score” mandatory for funding
Inactivity Policy (Effective February 12, 2025)
- Accounts (challenge or funded) inactive for 14 consecutive days will trigger enforcement of the new inactivity rule.
Account Offerings & Platforms
- $5,000 Funding accounts now available on DX Trade and cTrader
- Introducing $500K Senior Trader Fast-Track program (limited-time opportunity)
One-Step Pro Challenge launched
- Profit target: 12%
- Drawdown limits: 3% daily, 8% max
Instant Funding – Standard Model (updated rules)
- 3% daily loss (based on starting balance)
- 6% trailing max drawdown
- Bi-weekly payouts
- Up to 100% profit split
- No single trading day can account for 40% or more of total payout-period profit
Instant Funding – Pro Model
- Same 3% daily drawdown rule
- 5% trailing max drawdown
- Stricter consistency rule: single-day profit must be below 15% of total
Instant Funded Challenge introduced
- Profit split up to 95%
- 3% daily drawdown, 8% max drawdown
New futures prop firm launched: AquaFutures
Platform update: All cTrader accounts migrated to Platform 5
New account size available: 5K accounts now offered.
Profit split increased: Default split raised from 75% to 80% on all challenges.
Daily drawdown adjusted:
- 1-Phase Challenge: now 3%
- 2-Phase Challenge: now 4%
- 3-Phase Challenge: unchanged at 5%
- Applies to all new purchases from October 7, 2024.
New trading platform added: DXtrade is now available.
MetaTrader discontinued for US clients: Existing US-based MT4/MT5 accounts will be migrated to DXtrade.
Instant Funding (if applicable): No public update available, current structure appears unchanged unless noted by FXIFY.
- News Trading
- Not allowed ±2 minutes around high-impact news
- Violations lead to account termination
- News Trading Add-On available (from May 12, 2025)
- Trading Strategy Rules
- No copy trading, automation, or demo-only strategies
- Risk-free or manipulated trading is banned
- Over-leveraging and excessive scalping are prohibited
- Drawdown & Penalties
- Breaching max drawdown = instant account termination
- Violations may result in warnings, suspensions, or loss of profits
- Scaling Plan (Simulated Funded Accounts)
- Eligible after 10% profit over 3 months
- Balance increases by 20% per scaling step
- Max: $600K (ThinkTrader), $300K (MT5), potential up to $1.5M
- Martingale rule removed: Traders can now add to losing positions more freely on all account types, including Instant Funding. Just avoid repeatedly doubling lot sizes.
- Copy trading now allowed: You can copy trades from your personal accounts, whether at another prop firm, retail broker, or other sources, into your GFT account.
- Restriction: Copy trading between accounts not owned by the same individual is still not allowed.
- Introduced the 2 Step Pro Challenge: Featuring profit targets of 8% in Phase 1 and 4% in Phase 2, along with drawdown limits of 4% per day and 8% overall. Bi-weekly and on-demand payouts available.
- 3-Step Challenge introduced: 6% profit targets, 4% daily and 8% max drawdown, 1:100 leverage, bi-weekly payouts, 80% profit split with an optional 100% add-on.
- GOAT introduces the Instant Account: No profit targets, 1:50 leverage, 3% daily and 6% overall drawdown limits, and fast bi-weekly payouts with an initial 80% profit share.
- New prop firm for futures traders launched: Goat Funded Futures.
- New platforms added: cTrader and TradeLocker. MT4 has been removed; all MT4 accounts are migrated to Match Trader.
- Reset button introduced: Unlimited challenge resets available with 20% discount.
- Triple Payday payout cycle: Payouts now available on the 5th, 15th, and 25th of each month. Profit split increases with each payout — 65%, 70%, and then 80%.
- New Instant Funding Program now live.
- New payment methods added: PayPal, KORA (for Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya), and IMPS (for Indian traders).
Swing Plus Challenge released: New 2-step challenge model. - MTJ (My Trading Journey) launched: A trade copier and journaling tool.
- Pakistani traders are now accepted.
Trading Conditions Enhanced
- Minimum lot size lowered from 0.10 to 0.01 lots for FX and metals.
- Added six new currency pairs: USD/PLN, EUR/PLN, USD/CZK, EUR/CZK, EUR/HUF, USD/HUF.
- Inactivity limit extended from 20 to 30 days.
Promo Phase 1 Profit Reduction
Phase 1 profit target temporarily lowered to 5% for all Classic challenges ($5K, $10K, $25K, $50K).
FundingPips has launched FundingTicks, a futures-focused prop firm offering Instant Funding (FundingTicks Zero) and 1-Step Challenges (EOD & Static) with $50K and $100K accounts.
There are no activation fees, just a one-time payment. A 2-Step Pro Evaluation model is also available, featuring weekly bonuses and an 80% profit split.
On the Forex side, FundingPips Zero provides instant funding with a 95% profit split and bi-weekly payouts. The new 2-Step FundingPips Plus model offers 80% profit, payouts every 5 days, and no consistency rule during evaluation.
The $500 crypto payout limit has been removed; you can now withdraw any amount via crypto.
A new 2-step model, FundingPipsX, is also available.
Rule updates:
- The 3% loss limit on evaluations has been removed, but on Master accounts, your largest loss per trade must stay under 3%.
- Profits from trades closed within 1 minute are not counted on Master accounts.
- Splitting trades into multiple entries is counted as one trade.
- 3 minimum trading days are required for all models, except Master accounts.
2-Step payout options: Tuesday (60%), Bi-weekly (80%), or Monthly (up to 100%).
Bright Funded – Rule Updates (Effective August 13, 2024)
- The Negative Available Margin rule has been relaxed:
- Dropping below 100% margin no longer triggers a soft breach automatically.
- Traders now have more room for drawdown.
- New breach handling for the following cases:
- Negative Available Margin or hedging between accounts will now trigger a soft breach, not a hard breach.
- Only the trades causing the breach will be closed; the account stays active.
- Hedging violations policy:
- First offense: soft breach.
- Repeated offense: hard breach on related accounts.
Prestige Trader Program – Funded Trading Plus
- Two-phase evaluation with static drawdown: 10% target in Phase 1, 5% in Phase 2; max 10%, daily 5%.
- Withdrawals can be requested every 7 days after the initial 14-day period.
- Profit split starts at 80/20, increases to 90/10 at +20% profit, and reaches 100/0 at +30%.
- Scale up to $2.5 million in simulated capital upon meeting criteria.
Platform support is limited to MT5; no evidence of “Platform 4” or “Platform 5” yet.
Apex 3.0 Program Launched
- Simplified rules and structure
- On-demand payouts – no fixed payout dates
Trading Day Rules Updated
- Requires 8 trading days total
- At least 5 days must have $100+ profit
- Old strict consistency rule removed – now capped at 30% max daily profit
New Risk Control Rules
- Max 5:1 risk-to-reward ratio per trade
- First 3 payouts require keeping drawdown + $100 buffer
Drawdown Flexibility
- Starts at 30% of profit balance
- Can increase to 50% as account grows
Strategy Rules Adjusted
- DCA allowed if used responsibly
- HFT, manipulation, and hedging around news are not allowed
Payment Methods: PayPal is now supported for funding your evaluation account.
Inactivity Rule: Accounts with no trades for 30 consecutive days will be closed automatically.
News Trading: Trading orders 2 minutes before/after high-impact news won’t close your account, but profits from those trades will be removed.
High-Stakes Reward:
- Complete Step 1: earn HUB credits.
- Complete Step 2: receive a full refund.
Active Account Limits:
- High-Stakes: max 3 simultaneous accounts.
- Hyper Growth: max 4 funded accounts across all programs.
Account Migration: No clear public details—please confirm with their support team.
Reduced minimum trading days
- Lowered from 7 to 4 days per phase
New 3% max loss per trade rule (launched Feb 2025)
- Breach if any trade or overlapping trades lose over 3%
Launched Payouts On-Demand
- Traders can request payouts anytime after meeting basic criteria
Access Reopened to Banned Countries
- Now accepting traders from Vietnam, India, Pakistan, Germany, and more
Updated News Trading Rule
- Allowed during evaluation
- News trading on funded accounts requires an add-on
Weekend Trading Now Allowed
- You can hold trades over the weekend
New Double Leverage Add-On Introduced
- Traders can increase leverage beyond default settings
Risk Enforcement Remains Strict
- Still bans: account flipping, group hedging, tick scalping, manipulation, HFT
E8 Futures now available: E8 Markets has officially launched an evaluation program for futures trading.
Three program tiers:
- Beginner Program (Model 1): No daily loss rule, simpler structure, ideal for new traders.
- Advanced Program (Model 2): Standard risk measures; mid-level evaluation track.
- Expert Program (Model 3): Higher drawdown and profit targets for experienced futures traders.
New Platform Requirement
- All new accounts and resets must use TopstepX starting July 2025
- Old platforms no longer supported for new activity
Payout Cap Introduced
- Express Funded Accounts allow up to 5 payouts, each capped at $5,000.
Minimum Trading Days Reduced
- Only 2 trading days needed to pass the Trading Combine
Copy Trading Now Allowed
- Permitted on supported platforms as long as it’s not used to exploit rules
1-Step Futures Challenge: Now available with account sizes of $25K, $50K, and $100K. Designed for futures traders, offering a simplified one-phase model.
Commission Structure (MT5 only): Starting November 18, 2024, Forex and commodity commissions will be charged at entry, not at exit.
Symbol Delisting: There are claims that BCHUSD, USDTRY, EURTRY, and USDPLN will be removed due to liquidity issues, but no official announcement has been found. Check directly in your MT5 terminal or contact support for confirmation.
New Payment Options:
- Now supports Apple Pay and Google Pay
- Naira (NGN) is now accepted as a local payment option for Nigerian traders
Consistency Rule Removed
- No more daily profit consistency requirement across all challenges
Tiered Payout Structure Introduced
- 1st payout: 90% profit split, capped at 0.5% of starting balance
- 2nd payout: capped at 5%
- 3rd and beyond: capped at 10% each
- Split increases over time, up to 99% after six payouts
Lower Withdrawal Requirement
- Only 0.25% profit required to withdraw (was 1%)
Soft Breach Limit Added
- Max 3 soft breaches per challenge phase; the 3rd ends the account
- Resets when moving to a new phase
Inactivity Rule Standardized
- At least one trade (≥0.01 lots) required every 30 days
One-Phase Challenge Model Introduced
- Pass one phase to receive funding (no longer two phases)
Daily Profit Cap on Funded Accounts
- Max 50% of total net profit can be withdrawn daily
Drawdown Reset Time Adjusted
- Daily drawdown now resets between 4:57–5:03 PM EST
FTMO now accepts payments in Nigerian Naira.
Adjusted trading hours and platform unavailability for U.S. holidays (e.g., Juneteenth) and weekend maintenance
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