Prop Firm Glossary A-Z: Every Term Defined

Offers where the trader keeps all profit, usually offset by other fees.

A rule capping how much of your total profit any single day may carry.

The most you may lose in one trading day before breaching.

A simulated account mirroring live conditions; most evaluations run on them.

The maximum your account may fall from its high point before the firm closes it.

A futures/forex prop firm; facts and our FTMO comparison.

A drawdown calculated once per day at close, not tick by tick.

A large forex/CFD prop firm; what it offers and where our full review lives.

FTMO's evaluation product; structure, fees, rules.

The funded account FTMO issues after its two-step evaluation.

FTMO's futures-market offering and platforms.

FTMO's no-evaluation account offer, where one exists.

A trader who passed an evaluation and now trades the firm's capital for a profit split.

An account loaded with a firm's capital that you trade after passing evaluation.

A forex/CFD prop firm known for scale-up plans; facts and comparison links.

Futures firms selling accounts without evaluations.

A prop firm specialising in listed futures via platforms like Tradovate/Rithmic.

How futures firms differ on drawdown, data fees and payout rules.

The exchange data subscriptions some futures firms pass to traders.

Contract-count caps firms impose per account size.

Futures firms offering next-day or same-day withdrawals.

Futures firms with no ceiling on cycle withdrawals.

Accounts sold without an evaluation; how they differ and what to check.

The total peak-to-trough loss a firm allows across the whole account life.

Futures firms that impose no consistency restriction.

Firms permitting positions held past the daily close.

The percentage gain you must reach to pass an evaluation.

A company that lets traders use its capital in exchange for a share of profits, accessed by passing an evaluation.

The account a firm issues you after (or during) an evaluation, with its rules attached.

The fee-based test — profit target plus risk rules — that gates access to firm capital.

How firms define and enforce loss limits on evaluation and funded accounts.

Static, trailing, and end-of-day drawdowns: three ways firms measure the same limit.

The assessment phase (account, target, rules) used to decide who gets funded.

The one-off cost to enter an evaluation, typically $50–$500.

Rule types firms bury in terms and conditions until you breach them.

Firms' rules on account sharing, VPNs and logins from multiple locations.

What "prop firm" actually stands for and how the term is used in retail trading.

Restrictions on trading around scheduled economic releases.

The scheduled payment of your share of profits from a funded account.

A ceiling some firms place on how much can be withdrawn per cycle.

Why firms refuse payouts: rule breaches, consistency failures, KYC issues.

How often a firm pays: weekly, biweekly, monthly.

The smallest balance or profit amount you must reach before requesting money.

The firm's compliance check between your request and the money arriving.

How funded-trader income is treated for tax, and why records matter.

The percentage split of profits between trader and firm, typically 70–90% to the trader.

Evaluation fees returned (typically with your first payout) under set conditions.

The cost of restarting a failed evaluation without buying a new account.

Trading a firm's capital rather than your own, keeping a split of the profits.

The plain-English meaning of proprietary trading for retail traders.

Prop firms trade house capital for profit share; hedge funds manage outside investor money.

A practice account where the firm's real capital is not directly at risk.

A loss limit fixed at your starting balance that never moves.

Futures firms using fixed limits rather than trailing.

A forex prop firm with instant-funding options; facts and comparison links.

A futures-focused prop firm; key facts and our comparison coverage.

A loss limit that follows your account's peak as it grows.

What "trailing" means for your limit, with a worked balance example.

The broker/firm John's site is monetised with; what it offers and where our review lives.

Whether positions may stay open over the market close.