It would be interesting to know what gets you kicked out once funded the rules basically say you can go as low as the margin and still be funded. I highly doubt any firm will actually let you do this so what is the funded max drawdown.
The big issue, here, it seems to me (and I hope Ryan won't mind my saying) is that when funded, what you're offered is a profit-share of "up to 80%" depending on how they feel you've done on the Gauntlet. This seems very vaguely worded and subjective, when you compare it with the fixed 80% (after 100% of the first $5,000) that TST is offering. Not trying to criticise for the sake of it, but it's not clear to me why anyone would sign up to this rather than to TST's Combine, given the lack of certainty over what you're being offered. (And this is without even considering the much higher price, if you compare on a like-for-like basis.)
I think they will get some initial buyers but just as I discovered the 60 days is actually in their favor(as it should be) most people entering this aren’t going to be expert traders so once they get a bad day or several they will likely look at the rules as say I can go as low as possible and still get funded why not just start trading to get out the hole get deeper in the hole and then get stuck in a 60 day combine and likely cancel and go back to tst or Oneup
Competition is a good thing, anyway. I'm not suggesting they should offer exactly the same as TST - variation is good, too. But I honestly do find it very difficult indeed to see why anyone at all who's well informed and familiar with the structure and rules of each deal would elect to try this over TST's offer.
Hey guys, I understand the concern and confusion. I would really suggest taking a look at the other thread on ET that talks more about how we're different (https://www.elitetrader.com/et/thre...ay-trading-gauntlet-from-earn-2-trade.322214/). There are some pretty key differences (regulatory, taxes, flexibility, etc.). We haven't yet seen a profit share less than 70%. It's completely subjective, as is when you go in for an interview and they offer you a compensation package. It's dependent on how you do. Regarding the max drawdown, they typically give 20-50% max drawdown on the funded amount and it's not trailing. This is more than the competitors give. The situation you described about having a bad day or several days and then trying to dig out of it, that is absolutely what many live traders go through. It's not just sim. We're trying our best to emulate what happens in a live account. You can't just push a button, pay some more money, and reset. If you want to reset the Gauntlet, you have to purchase another, just as if you had redeposited into your account. Helios wants great traders and traders who they expect to stay funded traders. Not just traders who have a hot streak for a few days and expect to get someone else to trust their money with them and then get kicked off their funded account right away.
You can perhaps see, though, that potential customers are inevitably comparing an objective offer with a "completely subjective" one. Why do you think that's so for your business, when it so clearly isn't for TST's?
So Ryan, let's say someone has just passed the Gauntlet and set up for live trading: 1. How many ES contracts is he allowed to trade max. from the start? I am guessing maybe 3, or is that variable based on the Gauntlet? 2. What is the allowed max. drawdown in dollars? Is there one max. for day and another for week? 3. Assuming he is trading profitably, how does the increase in max. usable contracts work? (for example 1 extra contract for each 2K profit, or whatever)
I refer you to the other thread for details on how we're different and why. It's what we've found works best and finds the best traders.
1) They can trade whatever their margin allows. So if they get a $25k account, they can do as many contracts as that can support. 2) Depends on the offer. It's always a % of the initial account amount and never trails. So if they got for instance a $25,000 account and a 20% drawdown, they could dip to $20k. The day/month/week limits are typically what the trader set themselves in the gauntlet, but these are not hard forced and won't kick you out. Just might get you a call from Helios to discuss what's going on. The only hard loss limit is the max draw. 3) It increases based on your available margin. The trader can request additional funding at anytime and Helios will review their performance for an increase.