1. Corporate Profile and Reliability
- Establishment and Experience: The5ers is one of the longest-standing firms in the industry, operating since 2016. This longevity provides a level of historical reliability that few competitors can match. Hantec Trader, founded in 2023, is a newer entrant but carries the prestige of being associated with Hantec Markets, a regulated and established broker.
- Jurisdiction: The5ers operates from Israel, while Hantec Trader is based in Mauritius.
- Brokerage Integration: Hantec Trader offers a seamless experience with Hantec Markets, ensuring the firm has direct control over the trading environment. The5ers utilizes its own Liquidity Provider, offering a proprietary trading environment designed for professional scaling.
2. Evaluation Models and Diversity
- The5ers' Flexibility: They offer three distinct paths: Bootcamp (low-cost 3-step), Hyper-Growth (immediate funding with scaling), and High Stakes (standard 2-step). This allows traders to choose between high-leverage aggressive growth or low-cost entry.
- Hantec's Range: Hantec offers 1-Step, 2-Step (Enhanced/EnhancedX), and Instant Funding models. Their "Instant" programs are truly immediate but come with more restrictive trading rules compared to their evaluation counterparts.
- Scaling Potential: The5ers is famous for its aggressive scaling, allowing accounts to grow up to $4,000,000. Hantec also offers scaling by allowing traders to upgrade account sizes upon completion, but it is less structured than The5ers' mathematical progression.
3. Drawdown Mechanics and Risk Management
- Drawdown Calculation: This is a critical difference. The5ers uses a Balance-based drawdown, which is generally considered more "trader-friendly" as it ignores open equity profits. Hantec Trader uses a Trailing drawdown (based on balance) for its Instant and Express accounts, which can be much harder to manage as the "floor" moves up with your profits. However, Hantec's Enhanced and EnhancedX plans use a Static drawdown, providing more breathing room for swing traders.
- Daily Drawdown: Both firms utilize an EOD (End of Day) High-Watermark for most accounts, meaning the daily limit is reset based on the higher of the balance or equity at the day's close.
- Stop Loss Requirements: The5ers' Bootcamp mandates a stop loss for every trade (within 3 minutes) and limits risk to 2% per position. Hantec Trader has no mandatory stop loss across its programs, offering more freedom but requiring higher self-discipline.
4. Trading Restrictions and Rules
- Scalping: The5ers explicitly allows scalping without specific time restrictions. Hantec Trader has a "soft" restriction: the majority of trades must last longer than 3 minutes. This is a significant risk for high-frequency or manual scalpers who exit positions quickly.
- News Trading: Hantec is more permissive on Challenge accounts (no restrictions) but strictly prohibits market orders 3 minutes before/after news on Instant accounts. The5ers restricts news trading on High Stakes accounts (2-minute window) but allows it on Hyper-Growth and Bootcamp.
- Expert Advisors (EAs): Both firms allow EAs on evaluation accounts. However, Hantec prohibits EAs on Instant accounts, forcing manual execution. The5ers allows EAs but requires the trader to own the source code or use unique strategies, prohibiting "off-the-shelf" EAs used by thousands of others.
- Consistency Rules: Hantec imposes a Consistency Rule on EnhancedX (45% max day) and Instant Lite (25%). The5ers does not have a specific profit consistency rule, focusing instead on risk management (SL) and prohibited strategies.
5. Payouts and Profit Sharing
- Profit Split: Hantec starts at 80% (upgradable to 90% via add-ons). The5ers starts at 50% for Bootcamp/Hyper-Growth and 80% for High Stakes, both scaling up to 100% as the trader progresses.
- Minimum Withdrawal: Hantec is much more accessible with a $20 minimum. The5ers requires $150, which might be a hurdle for traders on smaller accounts ($5k or $10k).
- Fixed Monthly Salary: A unique feature of The5ers is the Monthly Fixed Payout ($4,000 to $10,000) for High Stakes traders who reach the top tiers of scaling ($350k - $500k balance). Hantec does not offer a fixed salary component.
6. Summary: Which Firm to Choose?
Choose Hantec Trader if:
- You want a direct connection to an established broker (Hantec Markets).
- You prefer Static Drawdown (available in Enhanced plans) and want to avoid mandatory Stop Losses.
- You need a low minimum withdrawal threshold ($20).
- You are looking for Instant Funding without an evaluation phase, and you don't mind trading manually (No EAs).
Choose The5ers if:
- You value longevity and reputation (operating since 2016).
- You prefer Balance-based drawdown to avoid the pitfalls of trailing drawdown.
- You are a long-term professional aiming for massive scaling (up to $4M) and potential fixed monthly salaries.
- You want to start with a very low entry cost via the Bootcamp model.
- You use EAs and want to keep using them on funded stages (provided you own the strategy).























