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Propfirm News by Dan Cheung

$50k of payouts DENIED - heres what i think of prop firms - unfiltered​

The Evolving Prop Firm Landscape​

The creator explains that the prop firm industry has gone through extremes:

  1. Too much in the prop firm's favour (Initial Stage): Early rules, such as having only 30 days to hit a 10% profit target, were unrealistic and led to high failure rates for traders.
  2. Too much in the trader's favour (Competitive Stage): Firms over-competed with 50% discounts, high drawdowns (12% or 15%), and easy rules, leading to unsustainable models. This attracted "cheaters" who exploited loopholes (e.g., reverse trading in Vietnam) and damaged the industry, causing firms to fail.
  3. The Happy Medium (Current Stage - 2025): The industry is now moving towards a healthy balance with more sustainable business models. Firms are implementing stricter rules, such as consistency and Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, to protect themselves from fraud, which the creator agrees with.

Why Prop Firms are Still Positive​

  • Opportunity and Leverage: Prop firms offer the chance to get funded for a low price (e.g., $5,000 funded for $29) and access large capital.
  • Established and Trusted Firms: Top-tier firms like FTMO and Funded Next have demonstrated longevity and reliability. FTMO, in particular, has paid out millions and remained in the space despite numerous competitors (My Forex Funds, TFT, and 15-20 others) shutting down.
  • Future Outlook: The creator is confident enough in the future to set a personal goal of making $1 million in payouts for himself and his students collectively.

Critiques and Accountability​

The creator notes that traders also need to be accountable:

  • Rules are Rules: Traders who break clear rules (e.g., max lot size, trading during news events) should not complain when their accounts are breached. If a trader wants to trade news, they should do it on their own personal account.
  • Broker-Backed Firms: He expresses caution regarding broker-backed firms (like OANDA) because they are often far behind the curve in terms of offerings and may not be competitive with the current prop firm community.
  • Futures Market: He also warns that the Futures prop firm space appears to be entering the same unsustainable, heavy-discount phase that the Forex prop firm space previously went through.

PROP FIRMS SCAMMED ME $50K, TIME TO QUIT?​

The Current Situation and Problem​

The speaker acknowledges the severe instability in the prop firm industry, including being owed over $50,000 in payouts due to insolvencies (like My Forex Funds and True Forex Funds) .

  • The Problem: The biggest issue is the shift in the business model. Initially, rules favoured the prop firm (e.g., forcing a 10% gain within 30 days). The model then swung too far, favouring traders with too-easy challenges and discounts ("race to the bottom"), making the firms' business models unsustainable.
  • The Solution: The industry needs a win-win scenario where the challenges are suitable for skilled traders, allowing both the firm and the trader to be profitable and sustainable.
  • Consequence of Playing the Game: The speaker admits he was "guilty" of playing the game and attempting to "burn through" challenges quickly, which was part of the problem leading to instability.

The New Trading Plan and Objective​

The speaker is not quitting trading, but is quitting new challenges and new, unestablished firms.

1. The Financial Goal​
  • New Target: To consistently earn £10,000 to £20,000 per month (averaging £120k to £240k per year) from prop firms.
  • Strategy: This is achieved by aiming for a low, manageable percentage:
    • On a £200,000 account: Aim for 5%.
    • On £1 million of funding: Aim for 1% or 2%.
  • Reasoning: This is a conservative amount that is "more than enough" to live a good life, cover family expenses, and provide consistency alongside his other businesses.
2. Selected Prop Firms​

The speaker's strategy is to step back, wait for the industry to stabilise, and stick to a small number of established firms he trusts. He will only be trading with the following three firms for now:

  1. FTMO
  2. Alpha Capital Group
  3. My Funded FX(He also mentions a fourth new firm coming soon that he likes)*
3. Personal Account Strategy​

To combat the "numbness to numbers" that comes from trading huge prop firm challenges, the speaker is rebuilding his personal trading capital.

  • Start Small: Starting with a $1,000 account to get comfortable with small numbers and respect the percentages.
  • Scaling Up: Once comfortable, he plans to deposit $10,000, and then $90,000, to reach a final personal account size of $100,000.
  • Goal: To trade this account throughout the year and take quarterly withdrawals
The "Why" of Trading​

The speaker concludes by reflecting on the core motivation:

  • Freedom: Trading is about "doing what you want, when you want, with who you want, and how you want".
  • Discipline: Prop firms serve as a guidance system, ensuring he gets paid out on his skill by sticking to rules, rather than over-leveraging or gambling.
  • Longevity: The focus has shifted from burning through challenges quickly to achieving long-term consistency.

FTMO BOUGHT OANDA (🚨BEST TIME FOR PROP FIRMS)​

The Acquisition: FTMO Buys OANDA​

The core announcement is that FTMO, a prop firm, has agreed to purchase OANDA, a major brokerage.

  • OANDA's Profile:
    1. Founded in 1996.
    2. A digital platform for traders.
    3. Had over 100,000 active traders and did $175 million in revenue in 2024.
    4. The speaker notes that OANDA provides one of the cleanest price feeds for instruments like Dax, Gold, and Footsie, which he uses on TradingView.
  • FTMO's Portfolio Expansion: This acquisition follows FTMO's previous move to acquire Quant Lane, which is a proprietary trading firm that gives traders live funds. FTMO's overall portfolio now includes:
    1. The FTMO two-step simulated trading challenge.
    2. Quant Lane (a live proprietary trading firm).
    3. OANDA (a major brokerage).
  • Future Operations: FTMO plans to maintain the OANDA Group as a standalone business after completing the transaction.

Implications for the Prop Firm Industry​

The speaker views this acquisition as a significant positive signal for the entire prop firm space.

  • Paving the Way: The fact that a prop firm (FTMO) is buying a brokerage (OANDA) is seen as a role reversal—brokers are typically the ones to buy prop firms. This highlights that the prop firm space is still in its infancy and demonstrates its potential.
  • Credibility and Safety: FTMO is setting a high standard and cementing its position as the number one, safe, and trusted firm. This is a "pinnacle step" that helps to push the whole industry forward.
  • Market Opportunity: The speaker believes this is the "best time to be in the prop firm space", because while FTMO is dominating the reliability aspect, it still has a capped maximum allocation of $400,000. This leaves significant opportunities for smaller, innovative firms (like CK Capital, Funded Next, and Crypto Fund Trader) that offer higher funding or different models.

FTMO's Status and Conduct​

The speaker emphasises FTMO's stability and ethical practices, especially following a volatile period in the industry where over 30 firms shut down .

  • Financial Strength: FTMO completed $5.2 million in charity last year.
  • Leading the Way: The speaker asserts that FTMO is "literally leading the way and leading the industry".
  • Transparency: The news of the OANDA acquisition is confirmed by press releases on both the FTMO and OANDA websites.

FundingPips Honest Review! BETTER than FTMO​

1. Company Profile Breakdown​

  • Belief/Model: Funding Pips believes traders should progress from "student to practitioner to master" using their evaluation models.
  • Origin: Established in Dubai, UAE, in 2022.
  • CEO: Khaled Dish.
  • Prop Firm Type: CFD (Contracts for Difference) for Funding Pips, with a separate futures firm called Funding Ticks.
  • Platforms: MT5, Match Trader, and C-Trader (Trade Locker has been removed).
  • Leverage: Up to 1:100.
  • Profit Split & Payouts: Payouts are bi-weekly, on-demand, or monthly. The split ranges from 60%, 80%, and 90%, and can reach 100% depending on the reward cycle.
  • Maximum Allocation: $300,000.

2. Challenges​

Funding Pips offers challenges for account sizes from $5K to $100K:

  • Two-Step Challenge:
    • Phase 1 Profit Target: 8% (The creator notes this is better than FTMO's 10% standard, though 10% is available for a cheaper price).
    • Phase 2 Profit Target: 5%.
      • Max Loss: 10%.
      • Daily Loss: 5%.
    • Minimum Trading Days: Three.
  • Instant Funding (Zero Challenge): Available at the Master stage, offering instant funding up to $100K, though this challenge has a consistency score.
  • Consistency Score: Not present on the two-step challenge, which is a benefit for traders.

3. Pros and Cons​

  • Biggest Pro: They pay out. The creator emphasises that this overweighs any other pro or con. He cites reports of them paying out up to $20-$25 million in a week, and confirms that his students have received multiple payouts without issues.
  • Other Pros (Implied): Faster payouts (within 24 hours reported by some), and easier challenge targets (8% vs. 10%) compared to FTMO, and a clean social media presence.
  • Cons (Implied): None explicitly stated that are significant enough to outweigh the pro of consistent payouts.

4. Experience & Final Verdict​

  • Creator's Experience: His experience has been neutral—a good thing, as it means he hasn't had any problems. He is currently focusing on Funding Ticks (futures) but will share his Funding Pips payouts once received.
  • Verdict: Should you get funded with them? 100% Yes.
  • Final Thoughts:
    • Funding Pips is positioned to be a top-three prop firm choice, alongside FTMO and Funded Next.
    • The firm is more innovative than FTMO, offering easier challenges and futures trading, which could lead them to take the number one spot in the industry.
  • He recommends building a foundation with CFD prop firms like Funding Pips before transitioning to futures.