Scaling and long-term growth: Blue Guardian Futures vs Upcomers Futures

Algaroud Center, 2nd Floor, Office 101-05, Dubai, UAE

Building A1, IFZA Business Park, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Sean Bainton

Jakub Zeliska

2021

2023

2% processing fee on all withdrawals (Riseworks).

Bank transfer: USD 19.90 + 2.49%. Crypto: USD 19.90 + 30%; reduced to USD 19.90 + 2.49% when more than 50% of the trader's purchases were paid in crypto.

After completing the evaluation and trading consistently on a Simulated Funded Account, the Risk Management team may invite traders to Live. There is no fixed timeline; each trader is evaluated individually. From 28/09/2026, all eligible funded accounts merge into one Live Account at transition. Their starting Live drawdowns add together: five $50K accounts provide $10,000 of combined drawdown. The $15,000 cap applies to new purchases after 28/09/2026. Contract limits scale with the combined drawdown, up to 10 minis / 100 micros. At each live profit milestone of 0.5x, 1x and 1.5x the starting drawdown, 25% of that drawdown is deposited into the Live balance as a bonus. The bonus becomes withdrawable after five winning days with the account in profit. Instead of trading Live, the trader may choose a one-time Live Buyout of 50% of the combined starting drawdown at transition. It is available once per trader, with a 28-day cooldown afterward. Live accounts use end-of-day drawdown with no daily loss limit. CME professional data, trade commissions and platform fees are deducted from the balance. Contract limits may increase with consistent performance.

Futures accounts are simulated (sim-funded).

• Standard: every 3 days, from 3 days after the first trade
• Reserve: instant payout once eligible (5 winning days)
• Express: daily payouts
• Direct: instant payout from day one

Withdrawal eligibility is confirmed by the end-of-day (EOD) dashboard update. Once the withdrawal button is enabled, a request can be submitted at any time without waiting for the next EOD update.

Classic: whenever the conditions are met. Vanguard: after 5 qualifying days for the first payout. Upcomers states same-day processing after approval.

Payouts processed within 24 business hours. If Blue Guardian misses that window through a delay on their end, you receive an extra 10% profit share on that payout. Does not apply on weekends or bank holidays, nor to delays from compliance or risk reviews, Rise onboarding or a pending trader response.

$500 across all account types.

USD 100.

Classic (payouts 1–5): 25K 500/1,000/1,500/1,500/1,500; 50K 800/1,600/2,400/3,000/3,000; 100K 1,400/2,800/4,200/5,000/6,000; 150K 2,000/4,000/5,000/5,000/9,000; 200K 2,600/5,000/5,000/5,000/12,000; 300K 3,700/5,000/5,000/5,000/18,000; 400K 4,700/5,000/5,000/5,000/23,500 USD. Vanguard (payouts 1–7): 25K 500/1,000/1,500/1,500/1,500/1,500/1,500; 50K 1,000/2,000/3,000/3,000/3,000/3,000/3,000; 100K 1,600/3,200/4,800/5,000/6,000/6,000/6,000; 150K 1,900/3,800/5,000/5,000/9,000/9,000/9,000; 200K 2,300/4,600/5,000/5,000/11,500/12,000/12,000; 300K 3,100/5,000/5,000/5,000/15,500/18,000/18,000 USD. The checkout sells Vanguard 400K, but the current public table does not yet publish its cap; confirm with support.

Realized profit and all positions closed; at least 1% profit since the previous payout. 20% Best Day Rule. Before the first payout, Vanguard requires 5 profitable days with at least 0.5% profit each.

Evaluation accounts can be reset at 30% off the original price. After failing the evaluation, the trader has 7 days to decide whether to reset. Funded accounts cannot be reset.

Resets are available when offered by Upcomers. A rule-violation reset permanently limits future payouts on that account to 50%.

Reserve challenges are configurable at checkout. Traders can choose a Daily Loss Limit or no Daily Loss Limit, combined with a 40% consistency rule (3-day pass) or a 50% consistency rule (2-day pass). The price varies depending on the selected combination.

Express challenges offer an optional 50% evaluation consistency add-on instead of the standard 40% rule, allowing traders to qualify after as few as 2 green days.

Vanguard offers instant funding with no evaluation.

Thunderbolt Classic is a one-step evaluation with a 6% target.

Scaling applies to funded Reserve and Express accounts only. Standard and Direct keep flat contract limits from start to finish.

On Reserve and Express you get full contract size during the evaluation, and funded limits start lower and grow with the account balance. Updated at end of day (EOD) on the closing balance; if the EOD balance drops below a trigger, the tier can go back down.

Starting funded limits

• $25,000: 1 mini / 10 micros
• $50,000: 2 minis / 20 micros
• $100,000: 3 minis / 30 micros
• $150,000: 3 minis / 30 micros

Scaling triggers ($25K / $50K / $100K / $150K)

• +$1,500: 2/20 · 3/30 · 4/40 · 4/40
• +$2,000: — · 4/40 · 5/50 · 5/50
• +$3,000: — · — · 8/80 · 8/80
• +$4,500: — · — · — · 12/120

Flat limits (Standard and Direct)

• $25,000: 1 mini / 10 micros
• $50,000: 4 minis / 40 micros
• $100,000: 8 minis / 80 micros
• $150,000: 12 minis / 120 micros

1 mini = 10 micros; contracts can be mixed within the limit.

+35% every 4 months, up to USD 4,000,000, with 15% cumulative growth, at least 2 payouts and a positive final cycle.

Trailing end-of-day (EOD) on all plans. Values per plan and size:

• Standard $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,500 / $2,000 / $3,500 / $5,000
• Reserve $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,000 / $2,000 / $3,000 / $4,500
• Express $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,000 / $2,000 / $2,500 / $3,500
• Direct $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,500 / $2,000 / $3,500 / $4,500

Once the trailing drawdown reaches the starting balance, it locks and stops trailing.

On Direct the drawdown becomes static after the account exceeds the initial trail balance or after the first payout request. After any approved payout the drawdown floor locks at starting balance + $100 on every plan.

Real-time trailing: 4% on Classic and 3% on Vanguard. It locks at the initial balance after the account grows by that same percentage.

90% on all funded accounts and plans.

A payout delayed beyond the 24-business-hour guarantee adds an extra 10% profit share on that payout.

90% selected for these prices. Checkout also allows 80% or 100%, adjusting the price.

Soft breach on every plan: open trades are closed automatically and the account is disabled for the rest of the day, then reinstated the next trading day.

• Standard $25K: none. $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,000 / $2,000 / $3,000
• Reserve: configurable at checkout. Traders can choose no daily loss limit or a soft DLL of $600 / $1,200 / $1,700 / $3,000 on $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K. The price varies depending on the selected option
• Express challenge $25K: none. $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,000 / $1,250 / $1,750
• Express funded $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $500 / $1,000 / $1,250 / $1,750
• Direct $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K: $1,000 / $1,250 / $2,500 / $3,000

Classic: 3% in evaluation and 2% when funded. Vanguard: 2%. Resets at 5:00 PM ET.

Standard — Funded Buffer

• $25,000 → $1,600
• $50,000 → $2,100
• $100,000 → $3,600
• $150,000 → $5,100

Payouts are only available from profits earned above the buffer, and the buffer must stay intact when submitting a request.

Express

• $25,000 → $1,100
• $50,000 → $2,100
• $100,000 → $3,600
• $150,000 → $5,100

Payouts are only available from profits earned above the buffer.

Reserve

• No buffer to reach before a payout, but after any withdrawal the drawdown floor locks at starting balance + $100.

Direct

• No profit buffer requirement.

• No minimum trading days on evaluation. Standard can be passed in as little as one trading day
• Express with the optional 50% consistency add-on can qualify after 2 green days
• Funded: one trade every 7 days to keep the account active

Classic can be passed in 1 day. Vanguard has no evaluation.

No activation

No activation fee or recurring platform/data subscription stated by Upcomers.

• Standard: no minimum. First payout 3 days after the first trade
• Reserve: 5 winning days before each payout, with a minimum of $100 / $150 / $200 / $250 profit per day on $25K / $50K / $100K / $150K. Winning days reset after every payout
• Express: no minimum
• Direct: no minimum

Vanguard requires 5 days with at least 0.5% profit each before the first payout; they do not need to be consecutive.

The contract limit depends on account size and does not drop after funding.

One-time fee

One-time payment based on program, size and profit split. The table shows the regular 90% price before any promotional code.

Thunderbolt Classic includes an optional Trial Phase; Vanguard has no evaluation.

No fixed account-count limit; total funded capital cannot exceed USD 1,500,000 across all Upcomers programs.

No time limit to pass Classic; all futures accounts close after 14 calendar days without closing a trade.

Bots and automation are allowed when the strategy is unique and responsible; no HFT, tick scalping, arbitrage, feed abuse or mass-shared strategies.

Upcomers' general VPN/VPS and identity-verification rules apply.

Allowed within the same account; coordinating opposite positions across accounts or people to bypass rules is prohibited.

Microscalping (trades held seconds with minimal profit margins) is prohibited. Automated scalping systems that exceed 200 trades per day are not allowed. Exploiting tight brackets or the simulated market's absence of slippage is forbidden.

Normal scalping is allowed; tick scalping and latency exploitation are prohibited.

Max risk-to-reward ratio: 5:1. For every $100 of profit target, your initial stop loss cannot exceed $500. Mental stops are accepted but excessive risk-taking can lead to warnings or payout disqualification. Adjusting stops to add risk goes against policy; only move stops forward to trail and protect profits.

Additional risk guardrails:

• Trade within 2% of any CME price limit is prohibited.
• Trading without clear risk management, excessive sizing, inconsistent contract sizes or "all-in" strategies may be considered gambling and lead to account review.
• Holding a position into the daily 16:10 EST auto-close is fine; the auto-close itself doesn't breach the account.

Hard maximum loss of 1.5% of account size per open trade. Positions in the same instrument and direction count as one trade.

Allowed between your own accounts; prohibited between different people.

Allowed on both challenge and funded accounts, on every plan. Traders can open, manage and close positions during high-impact news. Blue Guardian warns that slippage and spread widening may occur.

At least one trade every 7 days on funded accounts.

Automatic closure after 14 calendar days without closing a trade; the clock starts at purchase and resets with every closed trade.

A single trading day cannot equal or exceed:

• Standard: 40%, on the funded account only
• Reserve: configurable as 40% (3-day pass) or 50% (2-day pass), on the evaluation only
• Express: 40% on the evaluation by default; an optional 50% evaluation consistency add-on allows qualification after as few as 2 green days
• Direct: 20% on the first payout, 25% on the second, 30% from the third onwards

Calculation: Highest Net Profit Day / Total Account PnL. On evaluation accounts, passing is delayed until the ratio complies with the selected threshold. On funded accounts, payouts are blocked until the ratio drops below the applicable threshold. Violating the rule does NOT terminate the account.

20% Best Day Rule: the best day cannot represent more than 20% of total profit when requesting a payout.

• Automated scalping systems exceeding 200 trades per day.
• AI, bots and fully automated trading mechanisms (all account types).
• Hands-off, continuous day-and-night trading or complete automation.
• Placing multiple limit orders at the same price to manipulate fills.
• Strategies aimed at exploiting isolated fills in low-liquidity or gapped markets.
• Using tight brackets or absence of slippage in the simulated market for favorable fills.
• Trading during tier 1 economic data releases.
• Coordinated trading across unconnected accounts (identical or opposing strategies).
• Microscalping (trades held seconds with minimal margins).
• Trading within 2% of a CME price limit.
• Trading without a stop loss, relying on the trailing threshold to close trades.

HFT, tick scalping, arbitrage or latency abuse, feed/price abuse, mass-shared strategies, martingale, account rolling and any practice designed to exploit the simulated environment.