You must have heard the name of prop trading or proprietary trading. Right? Well, this happens when a financial institution trades using its own capital instead of the client’s money. Prop trading isn’t just for the experienced. Beginners can also indulge in prop trading with the proper research upon choosing the right firm.
How Do Beginners Choose a Prop Firm?
When choosing a prop firm, there are several things to keep in mind to ensure that you have made the right choice and may reap maximum benefits from your venture. Here are some of the things that beginners must keep in mind while choosing a prop firm:
- You must check the review and reputation of the firm that you wish to trade with.
- You also have to review the drawdowns, profit splits, and time limits to ensure that you are making a good bargain.
- Look for firms with transparent costs and low spreads.
- Ensure that you choose firms that have a good reputation and trustworthiness. When a firm has a good track record and offers transparency in payment, it is regarded as a trustworthy firm. You will get to know the overall performance of a firm through ratings, feedback, and reviews of other traders.
- Firms with a structured environment like proper training programs, mentorship, etc, are the ones you should choose as a beginner.
7 Best Prop Firms For Beginners
The prop firms on our list are some of the perfect ones that beginners can select for a hassle-free and convenient trading experience. Let’s check them out:
1. FTMO
FTMO is one of the best prop firms for both the novice and experienced. When trading with FTMO, traders have a two-step challenge to undertake, which is done to test their trading consistency. The challenge might seem tough, but you will reap great benefits if you manage to crack it. To participate in the challenge, you will have to pay a fee, the amount depending on the risk level. Moreover, when you succeed in getting your first virtual profit, you will also be able to retrieve the evaluation fee you paid initially.
Pros
When planning to trade with FTMO, knowing the benefits it offers is of immense importance:
- The fee to pay at the start is quite affordable.
- Traders can earn a profit of as much as 90%.
- The risk levels can be chosen as per your preferences, like normal or aggressive.
- It offers leverage as much as 1:100.
- They have a provision of a free trial where traders get the opportunity to test some of their trading applications.
Cons
FTMO has some drawbacks, which are stated below:
- FTMO has stringent requirements, and several challenges are associated with the initial testing process.
- The evaluation fees may seem quite high to some traders.
- Traders aren’t able to access the live market with their real money and must continue trading using their demo accounts.
2. Funded Next
Funded Next is another trading firm that suits the taste of various traders – beginners, full-time traders, experienced, and professionals. Funded Next provides a great virtual profit as much as 85%. You can access the platform upon paying a one-time fee. Funded Next has three account types: Funded Next Rapid, Funded Next Evaluation, and Funded Next Accelerated.
Pros
If you are wondering why you should invest with Funded Next, here are the reasons:
- You may reap a profit as much as 85%.
- The prices are quite affordable.
- You can earn profits virtually without undergoing the evaluation process.
- It provides a good leverage score of around 1:500.
- They are known for their fast payouts.
- It provides strong community support.
Cons
Let’s look into the disadvantages associated with Funded Next:
- They don’t have 24/7 customer service. Their customer service is available from Monday to Friday only. You can only contact them via email and online chat,
- They don’t have provisions for a free trial.
3. The Funded Trader
Another good trading firm for beginners is Funded Trade, where traders have the scope of earning a maximum profit split of 90%. The new approach adapted makes trading with the Funded Trader fun and engaging. It has a total of three challenges to choose from: rapid, standard, and royal. You can select a challenge, pick your goal, and then begin with the trading process.
Pros
Here are some pros to make note of if investing with the Funded Trader:
- The website design is engaging and simple.
- They offer a profit percentage of as much as 90%.
- They have customized plans as per the requirements of the trader.
- Their monthly competitions for free are one of their USPs to take into account.
Cons
Let’s look at the aspects where Funded Trader may lag.
- There isn’t any free trial available at present.
- Some of the trading rules may appear strict to many.
4. E8 Funding
E8 is quite new to the business, founded in 2021 in Dallas, Texas. They have a user-friendly interface through which traders get funding and liquidity opportunities. E8 funding allows trading in cryptocurrency, equity, commodity indices, and forex pairs. Traders can earn as much as 80% profit.
Pros
If you wish to become an E8 trader, here is what you should consider:
- The joining fee is low, which makes it quite flexible for many traders.
- There isn’t any time limit.
- It offers a profit as much as 80%.
- E8 funding has an automated payout system, which indeed is of immense convenience for traders.
Cons
There are certain disadvantages of E8 Funding, as stated below:
- The fees are comparatively high compared to most other platforms.
- Their customer support isn’t too strong, which might be quite inconvenient for many.
5. The Simulated Trading Capital
This one is quite a new trading firm and not that recognized,though. However, the trading parameters set by this prop trading fund appear more realistic with fewer restrictions. It has two phases: Phase 1 and Phase 2. Each of these phases formulates the trading objectives vividly and clearly. The virtual profit target in Phase 1 is 8%, and in Phase 2, it is approximately 5%. Once you become a prop trader, you won’t have any target.
Pros
Here are the advantages traders will get when they invest in prop trading:
- The Simulated Trading Capital firm gives traders greater freedom, increased flexibility, and more success rates.
- You will find the rules written on their website at length. This is of immense support, especially to new traders who are all set to try their hands at prop trading.
- Their trading process is extremely transparent, and the trading firm doesn’t provide traders with any unrealistic expectations.
- It provides a high profit split up to 85% and a refund of almost 120%.
- They provide many options from which traders may choose as per their availability.
Cons
Here are the drawbacks to make note of:
- The review platform Trustpilot has given Simulated Trading a relatively low rating.
- They don’t have strong customer service options like several trading platforms.
6. Forex Funder
Forex Funder is another significant trading company for beginners to take note of. They have a one-step and a two-step evaluation process. This way, traders may select the suitable experience evaluation based on their strategy and experience. When a trader completes the evaluation process successfully, they get a Forex Funder account. Here, they may have a whopping profit of 95%.
Pros
Let us look into the advantages of Fore Funder:
- It seems less restrictive in comparison to most other programs.
- You can start trading instantly after signing up. There isn’t any long wait process.
- It has a high-profit share of around 95%.
- There isn’t any limit to passing the evaluation process, which is a great relief indeed for beginners.
- They have customer service support 24/7. All you need to do is visit their official website and click on the live chat option. You will be instantly helped.
Cons
Now, let us look at the cons:
- It is comparatively expensive.
- Only demo accounts are used for trading, even upon reaching the funding phase.
- If you are a new trader, you might find it challenging at the beginning to meet the profit target.
7. For Traders
Another leading prop firm to discuss is For Traders, which is apt for beginners and experienced traders alike. There are several challenges at For Traders that the participants may select as per their goals. There is the one-step and two-step challenge for the convenience of the traders.
Pros
Here are the pros of trading with For Traders. Let’s take a look:
- You may trade on various trading platforms like cTrader, DXtrade, and TradeLocker.
- They provide expedited payouts each week and ensure that traders may quickly access their earnings.
- For Traders’ customer service agent will be there to help the traders with their queries. 24 hours a day, five days a week.
- This trading company provides various supporting tools like Trading journals for the assistance of their customers.
- For Traders offers a trading course to help new traders. It comprises twelve videos of two hours of video content.
- You can begin with a demo trading account. The starting balance may be the one of the trader’s choice.
Cons
Here are the cons to make note of:
- They don’t have a seven-day-week customer service.
Conclusion
So here is a list of some of the best prop firms beginners may choose from when they attempt their hands at trading. Individuals who are novices at trading must do their research well, go through the review and feedback of experienced traders, and then proceed to make their choices. Choose vigilantly to reap the best profits and incur minimum losses.
FAQs
The most trusted prop firms for beginners are DNA Funded, Bright Funded, FTMO, Think Capital, Funded Trading Plus, etc.
Prop firms are good for beginners. However, they should review and analyze the prop firm they are willing to invest in. Go through the demo account and initiate trading.
When choosing a good prop firm, you should select the ones that is highly reputed in the industry. You should check for ratings, feedback, and reviews provided by other traders. The policies of the prop firm must be transparent, with a good track record.
When talking about trustworthiness and reliability, some firms that top the list include DNA Funded, BrightFunded, Funded Trading Plus, etc.