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When a prop firm loss limit is touched while a trade is open, the breach usually counts at that moment, not at the close. This article explains equity-based limits, soft and hard breaches at FTMO and Topstep, a worked example with slippage, and a pre-trade sizing check.
12 articles
When a prop firm loss limit is touched while a trade is open, the breach usually counts at that moment, not at the close. This article explains equity-based limits, soft and hard breaches at FTMO and Topstep, a worked example with slippage, and a pre-trade sizing check.
On a funded prop account, risk is measured against a fixed loss allowance, not the account size on screen, so the same 1% rule means something very different than on a personal account. This article compares the two side by side, works through an illustrative example with FTMO's published limits, and shows how to size, set a daily stop, and journal both account types.
A prop firm consistency rule caps how much of your total profit may come from your best trading day. This article explains how the ratio is calculated, compares the official Topstep and FTMO versions, walks through a worked example, and lists habits that keep you under the limit.
Before paying a prop firm's evaluation fee, check whether the rules that can close the account are published in full, whether the fee is refundable, how profit split and the first payout actually work, and whether the business behind the offer can be verified as real. A practical checklist, a comparison table, and what a 2023 CFTC fraud case against a prop firm operator shows about why this matters.
A prop firm scaling plan increases a funded trader's account balance, and sometimes the profit split, after a fixed review period of consistent profit. How the general mechanic works, what can stop a scale-up, and FTMO's and FXIFY's own published numbers compared side by side.
Most comparisons stop at phase count, but the profit target split, drawdown type, minimum trading days, and consistency rules can all differ between one-step and two-step versions of the same program. Real numbers from FTMO and FXIFY, and a decision framework for which format fits which trader.
Daily and maximum drawdown are calculated differently and reset on different schedules. Here is how the two limits actually work, and how to track both in a trading journal instead of guessing from your account balance.
A prop firm payout gets reviewed against your full trading history, not just your balance. These six journaling habits, not trading mistakes, are what usually trip that review.
A challenge fee buys one attempt, not a guarantee. The refund usually arrives with the first payout, not the pass, so resets and repeat attempts are what actually decide whether the fee pays off.
A payout isn't automatic once an account is profitable. Minimum trading days, the consistency rule, and profit split all get checked, and missing any one is the most common reason a payout gets delayed or denied.
Passing a challenge without breaching the drawdown limit comes down to four mechanical rules: a daily risk buffer, fixed risk per trade, a loss-count circuit breaker, and live tracking of the distance to the limit.
Only 14 percent of prop firm challenge attempts reach a funded account, and 7 percent ever get paid. The gap comes from a small set of repeatable mistakes, not a lack of skill.
