Discussion Forum for trading analysis, help, signals and learning how to trade. Chat with other traders , post analysis, trades and ask questions. This is the public part of my website. For more in-depth discussions please consider joining to chat with other members
Forum Navigation
Prop Trading - what is it? How do you do it? How does it work?
#1 · 20th July 2026, 1:24 pm
Prop trading, or proprietary trading, is when a firm trades financial instruments - such as stocks, forex, or commodities - using its own capital rather than client money. Instead of earning commissions, the firm and the trader split the profits.
How Prop Trading Works
In retail prop trading, individuals use the firm's capital rather than their personal funds. The typical process includes:
- The Evaluation (The Challenge): Traders pay a fee to enter an evaluation or challenge account. They must hit specific profit targets within a time frame while strictly avoiding maximum daily or total drawdown limits.
- The Funded Account: Upon successfully passing the evaluation, the trader receives a "funded account".
- Profit Sharing: The trader actively trades the market according to the firm's risk rules, keeping a large majority of the profits (usually between 70% and 90%).
Traditional vs. Modern Prop Trading
- Traditional Prop Firms: Historically operated by banks and hedge funds. These firms hire traders directly, provide thorough training, pay a base salary, and grant them a smaller percentage of generated profits (often 10%-30%).
- Modern Retail Prop Firms: Often virtual or independent companies that operate on an evaluation model. Traders pay entry fees, trade via demo/simulated accounts to prove their competence, and are then granted larger simulated capital pools to trade for a generous payout split.
IC Funded is a proprietary trading (prop) firm backed by the major CFD broker IC Markets. It allows traders to manage large virtual capital pools (up to $500,000) and keep up to 80% of their generated profits by successfully completing 1-step or 2-step trading evaluations.
How It Works
- Evaluation Process: Traders pay a one-time fee to attempt a challenge. You must meet specific profit targets (e.g., 5% to 10%) while avoiding predefined daily and overall drawdown limits.
- Funded Accounts: Upon passing, you gain access to a live simulated trading account and can start earning profit splits.
- Trading Conditions: Because of its affiliation with IC Markets, IC Funded gives users access to tight, competitive spreads and popular platforms like cTrader and MetaTrader.
For further details on account rules or to view the evaluation structures, check out the IC Funded Evaluations page.