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Comparison · Forex

Trading styles allowed at City Traders Imperium and Crypto Fund Trader

City Traders Imperium offers entry prices starting at $29 for small accounts, with a focus on long-term growth through a VIP program that can reach a 100% profit split and refunds upon hitting targets. Crypto Fund Trader positions itself with a strong focus on crypto assets and higher leverage (up to 100:1), though it does not offer refunds for the sign-up fee. While City Traders Imperium uses a soft-breach system for its mandatory stop-loss rule, Crypto Fund Trader provides a reset option for funded accounts if risk rules were followed, despite a 5% fee on crypto payouts.

Updated on

Scalping

Both firms allow scalping, but the conditions significantly change the experience for a high-frequency trader.

  • Rules and Risk: City Traders Imperium requires a mandatory stop loss on every trade; failing to set one results in the system closing the trade after 1 minute (soft breach). This can be disruptive for very fast scalpers. Crypto Fund Trader does not mandate a stop loss, allowing for more flexibility, but prohibits "tick scalping" and latency exploitation.
  • Platforms and Cost: Both offer MT5 and MatchTrader, which are standard for execution speed. However, Crypto Fund Trader’s commissions are varied ($5 per lot on Forex, but percentage-based on others), while City Traders Imperium charges a flat $5 per lot on Forex and Metals.
  • Leverage: Scalpers will find more "buying power" at Crypto Fund Trader with 100:1 leverage on Advance accounts, compared to the much more conservative 30:1 at City Traders Imperium.

Swing Trading

This style is well-supported by both firms as they both allow holding positions over the weekend and overnight.

  • Rules and Risk: City Traders Imperium uses trailing drawdown for its 1-Step accounts, which can "choke" a swing trade as profit is realized. Its 2-Step and Instant accounts use static drawdown, which is much safer for long-term holds. Crypto Fund Trader also uses static drawdown for 2-Phase and Instant accounts, but its 1-Phase uses trailing drawdown.
  • Payouts and Consistency: City Traders Imperium requires a "Consistency Score" only if you plan to scale Instant accounts; otherwise, it’s very swing-friendly. Crypto Fund Trader has a 40% consistency rule only for its "Break" accounts during the payout phase.
  • Costs: City Traders Imperium offers "Swap-Free" accounts, which is a massive advantage for swing traders who hold positions for weeks, avoiding the erosion of profits through overnight interest. Crypto Fund Trader does not offer swap-free options.

Automated Trading (EA)

The use of Expert Advisors is permitted in both firms, but with different philosophies regarding third-party software.

  • Rules: City Traders Imperium is stricter: it prohibits 3rd-party EAs in all challenges except the 1-Step. This means you should ideally use your own code. Crypto Fund Trader allows EAs for "normal trading" but strictly forbids HFT, arbitrage, or exploitation EAs.
  • Interactions: In City Traders Imperium, the combination of allowing EAs but requiring a stop loss means your code must include an SL function to avoid the 1-minute auto-close rule.
  • Platforms: MT5 is the primary choice for automation in both firms.

News Trading

Traders who look for volatility during economic releases can operate in both firms, though one has specific risk caps.

  • Rules: City Traders Imperium allows news trading without specific restrictions on the execution time. Crypto Fund Trader also allows it generally, but for "Ascend" accounts, it prohibits opening new positions 2 minutes before and after high-impact news if the theoretical risk exceeds 2% of the initial balance.
  • Risk: The high leverage at Crypto Fund Trader (100:1) makes news trading extremely dangerous due to slippage, whereas City Traders Imperium’s 30:1 leverage provides a natural buffer against over-leveraging during news events.

Copy Trading

There is a clear divide here: one firm treats it as a prohibited strategy while the other allows it under specific conditions.

  • Rules: City Traders Imperium lists "Copy Trading" as a prohibited strategy. You cannot copy trades from other traders or external signals.
  • Alternative at CFT: Crypto Fund Trader allows copy trading but with limitations: you can only copy between your own accounts. Copying from third parties or coordinated trading between different users is strictly forbidden. In the "Break Final Stage," copy trading is entirely prohibited.

If you trade like this

  • If you are a disciplined Forex swing trader: City Traders Imperium is the better choice due to its Swap-Free accounts, the possibility of reaching a 100% profit split, and the refund of your registration fee.
  • If you are a high-leverage Crypto enthusiast: Crypto Fund Trader is superior, especially with its native Bybit integration and 100:1 leverage on crypto futures.
  • If you hate mandatory Stop Losses: Crypto Fund Trader is your only option here, as City Traders Imperium will close your trades automatically if you don't set one.
  • If you want to manage multiple accounts of your own via copying: Crypto Fund Trader allows this internal management, whereas City Traders Imperium prohibits the practice entirely.

Frequently asked questions

Which firm is cheaper to start a $50,000 challenge, City Traders Imperium or Crypto Fund Trader?

City Traders Imperium is cheaper for this specific size. Its $50,000 1-Step challenge costs $299, while the $50,000 1-Phase challenge at Crypto Fund Trader costs $369. Additionally, City Traders Imperium offers a 100% refund of this fee when you reach your first 10% profit target on a funded account, a benefit Crypto Fund Trader does not provide.

Does City Traders Imperium or Crypto Fund Trader have a stricter stop-loss policy?

City Traders Imperium is significantly stricter. It requires a mandatory stop loss on every trade; if not set, the system automatically closes the position after 1 minute (a soft breach). Crypto Fund Trader does not require a mandatory stop loss for trading, although it encourages its use by offering account resets and "profit breach" rewards only to those who used stop losses on every trade.

Which firm offers better conditions for trading Crypto, City Traders Imperium or Crypto Fund Trader?

Crypto Fund Trader offers superior conditions for crypto. It provides leverage up to 100:1 and allows a direct connection to Bybit for trading crypto futures 24/7. In contrast, City Traders Imperium offers a very limited leverage of 2:1 for cryptocurrencies and a smaller range of crypto assets compared to the specialized focus of Crypto Fund Trader.

Between City Traders Imperium and Crypto Fund Trader, which one pays out faster?

City Traders Imperium has the potential for faster payouts through its VIP program. While its standard payout is monthly or bi-weekly, "Bronze" level traders get weekly payouts and "Silver" level traders can withdraw at any time. Crypto Fund Trader generally requires 15 traded days or 30 calendar days, which can be reduced to 7 traded days only if you purchase a specific "Weekly Payout" add-on for an extra 20% cost.

Field by field

City Traders Imperium and Crypto Fund Trader, side by side

Rules, plans, platforms, leverage, commissions and payouts of both, with the option to see only what differs.

Head to head

54 differences

15%off · Exclusive
Headquarters

Algaroud Center, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Bahnhofstrasse 21, 6300, Zug, Switzerland

CEO

Daniel Martin and Martin Najat

Alan Sanchez

Country

United Arab Emirates

Switzerland

Foundation

2018

2022

Banned Countries
Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Vietnam
No data
Assets
Forex, Commodities, Indices, Crypto
Forex, Indices, Commodities, Crypto, Stocks
Brokers
City Traders Imperium
Proveedor de liquidez, Bybit
Refund
Yes
  • 1-Step, 2 Step: 100% of your sign-up fee refunded when you hit 10% profit target on funded account
  • Instant Funding: 50% of your sign-up fee refunded when you hit 10% profit target on funded account at level 2
  • Instant Funding Pro: No refund
No
Payout Fee
No data

5% processing fee on crypto payouts. Only TRC20 USDT supported.

Platforms
Metatrader 5, MatchTrader
Metatrader 5, MatchTrader, ByBit
Demo Account
No data
Metatrader 5
ID123456Password7cZy-gEoServerRLCrates-Live
Match Trader
ID-PasswordDemoCFT1
Payout Methods
Transfer, Crypto
Crypto, Transfer
Payment Methods
Card, Crypto, Transfer
Card, Crypto, PayPal, ApplePay, GooglePay
Payout Frequency

1-Step, 2-Step

  • 1st payout after at least 7 Profitable (0.5% or more) Trading Days and a Minimum of 2% net profit or $100 (whichever is higher).
  • After your 1st payout, you can request any subsequent payouts Monthly, during the last 5 days of each month.

Instant

  • You can request the 50% profit share from Level 1 when the 10% profit target is achieved on Level 2.
  • You can request the second payout on Demand anytime once you have at least 5 profitable trading days and a minimum of 2% net profit or $100 (whichever is higher).
  • After the 1st payout, you can request any subsequent payouts Bi-Weekly, on the 14th/15th & the last 2 days of each month.

1-Phase and 2-Phase: after at least 15 traded days or every 30 calendar days; the Weekly Payout add-on reduces this to 7 traded days. Break: on demand with no minimum traded days after passing, paying the activation fee and meeting the 40% consistency rule. Instant: Withdrawal & Upgrade at 10% profit with no minimum days; earlier withdrawals follow the standard conditions.

Crypto Weekend Trading
No data
Yes
Maximum Withdrawal
No data

$5,000 per transaction (crypto)

Forex
30:1
  • Advance accounts: 100:1
  • Student accounts: 30:1
Metals
10:1
  • Advance accounts: 100:1
  • Student accounts: 30:1
Energies
10:1
  • Advance accounts: 100:1
  • Student accounts: 30:1
Indices
10:1
  • Advance accounts: 100:1
  • Student accounts: 20:1
Crypto
2:1
  • CFT Platform and MetaTrader: Advance accounts 100:1; Student accounts 5:1.
  • Bybit evaluations: up to 100:1, depending on the instrument and the limits available on Bybit.
Stocks
No data
  • Advance accounts: 100:1
  • Student accounts: 5:1
Forex
5 / lot
5 / lot
Metals
5 / lot
0.001%
Energies
0.05 / lot
0.001%
Indices
0.5 / lot
0.01%
Crypto
0 / lot
0.065%
Stocks
No data
0.004%
Commission-Free Option
No data
No
Swap Free
Yes
No
Account Reset

You can reset your challenge with an unlimited 15% discount (1-Step, 2-Step, Instant Funding) or 10% (Instant Funding Pro)

If your final-stage account is suspended, you can request a reset within 30 days as long as:

  • Every trade had a stop-loss.
  • No trade lost more than 2%.

2-Phase (size -> reset)

  • $5,000 -> $180
  • $10,000 -> $345
  • $25,000 -> $760
  • $50,000 -> $1,140
  • $100,000 -> $1,880
  • $200,000 -> $3,620

1-Phase (size -> reset)

  • $5,000 -> $198
  • $10,000 -> $380
  • $25,000 -> $840
  • $50,000 -> $1,255
  • $100,000 -> $2,079
  • $200,000 -> $3,980
Add-ons
No
Yes

1-Phase: Weekly Payout (+20%) and 90% Profit Split (+20%). 2-Phase: Weekly Payout (+20%), 90% Profit Split (+20%), 6% Daily Drawdown (+15%) and 12% Maximum Drawdown (+25%).

Instant
Yes
Yes
One Step
Yes
Yes
Account scaling
Yes

1-Step, 2-Step

  • You must achieve at least a +10% profit overall in the last 4 months. (Withdrawals don't affect this target).
  • Be profitable in at least 2 out of those 4 months.
  • Your account must have a positive balance (in profit) at the time of scaling.
  • Balance increases by +50% of its original balance, up to $100,000, and then $25,000 up to $200,000

Instant

  • You must achieve a 10% net profit of the initial account balance. (Withdrawals don't affect this target).
  • 20% Consistency Score.
  • Your account balance doubles until you reach the $2 million per account.
Yes

Only Instant account can be scaled. Request a withdrawal after 10% profit to double the size of your account up to a max of $1,280,000.

Two Steps
Yes
Yes
Max Drawdown
  • 2-Step, Instant: Static
  • 1-Step: Trailing
  • CFT Platform and MetaTrader: 2 Phases and Instant use a static maximum loss; 1 Phase uses trailing drawdown.
  • Bybit: 1-Phase and Break use a balance-based trailing loss limit that locks at the initial balance after sufficient profit. 2-Phase, Ascend and Instant use fixed maximum-loss limits.

Exact limits are shown in each challenge.

Profit Split
  • 1-Step, 2-Step: 80% (base value), 90% (Bronze Level), 100% (Silver Level)
  • Instant Funding: starts at 50% (Level 1)
  • Instant Funding Pro: starts at 70% (Level 2)
  • Instant scaling: 80% (Level 3), 90% (Bronze Level), 100% (Silver Level)
  • Instant: 50% at the starting level, then 60%, 70%, 80% and 90% as the account scales.
  • 1 Phase and 2 Phases: 80% in the Final Stage, with an optional 90% add-on.
  • Break: 80% in the Final Stage.
Free Trial
Yes
No
Profit After Breach
No data

If your final-stage account is suspended with virtual profits, you can still receive up to 50% in performance rewards if:

  • Every trade had a stop-loss.
  • No single trade lost more than 2%.
  • You traded for at least 15 days.
Daily Drawdown

Balance-based

  • CFT Platform and MetaTrader: 2 Phases, 1 Phase, Instant and Ascend use balance-based daily drawdown.
  • Bybit: daily drawdown is calculated from equity using the account balance at 00:05 UTC. Break accounts do not have a separate daily-loss limit.

Exact limits are shown in each challenge.

Three Steps
No
No
Max Allocation
  • 1-Step: $200,000
  • 2-Step: $200,000
  • Instant: $80,000

Standard Final Stage allocation is capped at $300,000. Instant accounts are separate and can scale to $1,280,000. Break and Ascend accounts also have separate allocation limits.

Merge Accounts
No
No
Maximum Trading Days

Unlimited

Unlimited

Minimum Trading Days
No data
  • 1-Phase, 2-Phase and Break: no minimum trading days to pass the evaluation.
  • Instant: no evaluation phase and no minimum days.
  • Ascend: 5 trading days in evaluation.
Points Reward Program

Loyalty Program. Complete daily and weekly quests to earn points, unlock discounts, and win cash prizes or even free funded accounts.

No data
Monthly Competition
No data
No
Minimum Profitable Days
  • 1-Step, 2-Step: 3 days on evaluation phase, 7 days on funded phase
  • Instant: 5 days for payout On Demand
No data
Expert Advisor (EA)
Yes
Limited

Expert Advisors and automation are allowed when used for normal trading. EAs designed for high-frequency trading, tick scalping, arbitrage, reverse trading or exploitation are prohibited.

VPN
Yes
Yes
Hedging
No
No
Requires Stop Loss
Yes

Not using a stop loss is treated as a soft breach. Your account won’t be closed, but the system will automatically exit the trade after 1 minute if no stop loss has been set.

No
Scalping
Yes
Limited

Normal scalping is allowed. Tick scalping, high-frequency trading and latency exploitation are prohibited.

Stacking / Layering (DCA)
No
Yes
Martingale
No
No data
Maximum Risk Limit
No data
Yes

Simulated profit is capped at $10,000 per trading day and per trade. Trades closed in parts or opened together as one strategy may be treated as a single trade.

Copy Trading
No
Limited

Copy trading is allowed under the firm's general rules. Break evaluations may be copied only between the same trader's own Break accounts. Copy trading is prohibited in Break Final Stage and between different traders, third parties or coordinated accounts.

News Trading
Yes
Yes

Ascend

During the two minutes before and after high-impact news or market open, traders must not open or add new positions, nor increase or combine their maximum theoretical loss beyond 2% of the account's initial balance.

Inactivity Rule

30 days

No data
Consistency Rule
No
Limited

Only Break Final Stage accounts apply a consistency rule: no single trading day may represent more than 40% of total profits. It is checked only when requesting a payout and does not breach the account.

Hold Weekend
Yes
Yes

Crypto futures trade 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and positions may remain open overnight and over weekends.

Prohibited Strategies
  • Exploit Price Inefficiencies / Price Feed Errors
  • Group Hedging / Hedging / Group Trading / Copy Trading
  • Account Sharing / Reselling of Account / Account Management
  • One-Sided Bets
  • Gamble to Pass / Over-Leveraging
  • Using 3rd-Party EAs (Excluding the 1-Step Challenge)
  • Bracketing Strategies
  • Martingale Trading Style (Excluding the 1-Step Challenge)
  • Grid Trading

High-frequency trading, tick scalping, latency or price-feed exploitation, arbitrage, gambling or all-in trading, abusive hedging, reverse trading across accounts and coordinated trading are prohibited. On Bybit, unauthorized deposits into the subaccount, modifying or disconnecting the API, spot trading, options and non-USDT pairs are also prohibited.

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