How to pass the FTMO challenge
How to pass the FTMO challenge is the one million dollar question for a lot of forex traders. Fortune seekers that think so prop firms just pass you a funded account where you get to be a millionaire in a matter of months. If it would be this easy, I would not have written this post. Let’s dive in and see why it is so hard and more important, how to pass that challenge.
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What is the FTMO challenge?
FTMO is a proprietary trading firm that offers prop firm challenge to the interested traders and after evaluating them with a thorough process, they allow those qualified traders to trade with the company’s money in exchange for a percentage of the profit. If we look at their evaluation process, we can see that they have two phases to pass to be the FTMO trader- FTMO Challenge and Verification.
FTMO Challenge Phase. In this step, the trading period is 30 days, and the minimum trading period is 10 days. The maximum daily loss is 5% and 10% for aggressive version from the initial account balance. They also count the floating losses in daily drawdown limit. Here is their counting formula- Current daily loss = results of closed positions of this day + result of open positions. Moreover, the capital of the trading account cannot be decline below 90% of the initial balance. The profit target in this step is 10% of initial balance.
How does FTMO make money?
Clearly FTMO is a commercial company and are in the game to make money. Just ask yourself, if 90% of all traders would pass their challenge, they would not be able to find money to fund all strategies. Therefore, they deliberately make it hard for anyone. This way they can collect fees and fund just a small percentage of traders.
Why is it so hard to pass this challenge?
If it would be easy, FTMO would not make a buck. First, let me disclose what you are facing.
FTMO has its own MT4 White label platform
They can set spreads as they prefer
They can set swaps as they prefer
They have banned numerous trading techniques.
This means that they can determine what price feed you see, spreads, stop out levels, slippage, freezing, swap rates etc. I think its fair to say that their first intention is to make it as hard as possible for you to succeed.
Look at the images below. The first shows the swap rates for a challenger the second is a regular broker account.
On the left a challenge account, on the right a regular broker account. Look at the Swap long. Negative on the left, positive on the right. Oops!
How can I increase my chances to pass the challenge?
To make 10% profit with just 5% max drawdown you need skills. Many traders that take the challenge are simply not skillful enough for it, ending up losing fees. So firstly, make sure you practice a lot before starting off.
Lot size
Probably the number one reason why traders lose this challenge. They simply over trade. Calculate exactly what profit you want to make in a trade and also what amount you are willing to lose.
Discipline
In order to survive the test, discipline is essential for passing. Make sure you have a real trading plan and stick to it. Whenever you start to change a stop loss or adding to a losing position, you are doomed.
Experience
Unfortunately this part you cannot learn over night. It takes time. Trading is rather easy learned, but smart trading with a maximum drawdown with harsh trading terms is not. Therefore it is recommended to take as many lessons as you can find in order to increase your trading skills.
Can Scalprobot pass this challenge for me?
Scalprobot does provide this service where our bots take on the challenge. Especially an interesting possibility when you are under time pressure or at a loss. We do have scalping strategies developed for this type of trading and the average time it takes to achieve your trading objective is two weeks. However, there is still risk involved. Another way is to follow our telegram signal channel where we provide signals, tips and tricks to pass any challenge and to grow your funded account. Click here to subscribe. Please contact us for more information.
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Risk warning
Trading foreign exchange on margin carries a high level of risk, and may not be suitable for all investors. The high degree of leverage can work against you as well as for you. Before deciding to invest in foreign exchange you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your initial investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with foreign exchange trading, and seek advice from an independent financial advisor if you have any doubts.
Hypothetical performance
Hypothetical performance results have many inherent limitations. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown. In fact, there are frequently sharp differences between hypothetical performance results and the actual results subsequently achieved by any particularly trading program. One of the limitations of hypothetical performance results is that they are generally prepared with the benefit of hindsight. In addition, hypothetical trading does not involve financial risk. Variables such as the ability to adhere to a particular trading program in spite of trading losses as well as maintaining adequate liquidity are material points which can adversely affect actual real trading results.
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