Is The Funded Trader Still Worth It in 2026?
The Funded Trader is still operating in 2026, more than two years after a payout crisis forced it to pause. Independent trackers still call the recovery partial, and the firm's own disclosed figures show most reactivated traders still haven't been paid. Here's what's verified, and four alternatives with cleaner track records.
By John McLaren
The Funded Trader's March 2024 collapse, and why the recovery is still incomplete
In early 2024, The Funded Trader was a large forex prop firm with a reported 80,000+ accounts. In February 2024, Eightcap, one of the brokers serving it, withdrew prop-firm services after MetaQuotes warned brokers they risked losing their MetaTrader licences if they kept serving prop firms. The following month, on March 28, 2024, CEO Angelo Ciaramello announced the firm was pausing all operations, after weeks of mounting complaints about denied withdrawals. In a livestreamed Q&A, Ciaramello presented a graphic claiming TFT had paid out over $17M to traders in January-February 2024 while blocking just over $2M in withdrawals over the same period, citing KYC checks, fraud, and prohibited trading strategies. Finance Magnates reported those figures as presented by Ciaramello rather than as independently verified, and quoted traders publicly disputing them.
The firm returned in August 2024 after five months offline, and thefundedtrader.com was still selling challenges when we checked it on 18 August 2026. But the backlog from the pause never fully cleared: in April 2025 TFT itself posted that it had reactivated 25,513 accounts from the relaunch pause and paid only 459 of them, totalling $378,604, a payout rate it put at 1.8%. In March 2025 Finance Magnates reported 1,272 clients still waiting for payment since March 2024, by then over a year. ThePropFirmGuide's shutdown tracker listed the firm's status in May 2026 as partial recovery, not fully operational.
This isn't a 'the firm is gone' story; The Funded Trader is still taking new customers. It's a 'know what you're signing up for' story: every figure above is sourced below, and most of them are TFT's own published numbers rather than anyone's characterisation of them.
Quick answer
The Funded Trader is active and selling challenges again in 2026, but its recovery from the March 2024 payout crisis is incomplete: by its own disclosed figures, fewer than 2% of reactivated accounts have been paid. FundedFast, FTMO, FundedNext, and Alpha Capital Group all have cleaner, better-documented payout records.
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See the FundedFast OpenHow we ranked these alternatives
FundedFast is the company publishing this page, and it ranked itself first here. That ownership is disclosed, not hidden. We believe we're a genuinely strong option for traders weighing The Funded Trader, especially anyone who values a clean payout record over brand recognition. The other four firms are real, independently-viable alternatives we'd recommend even if your priorities don't match ours. We ranked five firms on the criteria that matter most given the topic: payout track record and transparency (weighted heaviest here), operating jurisdiction and corporate transparency, true total cost, profit split, and asset coverage. Figures were checked against each firm's public pricing pages and Trustpilot profiles as of July 2026.
Ownership disclosure: FundedFast operates this website, and FundedFast challenges appear in the comparisons below. Every firm, including ours, is assessed against the same published criteria, and we link to each competitor so you can verify our numbers yourself. How we rank and earn is documented in our editorial policy. Read our editorial policy
How we know this
Every claim about this firm traces to a published source. Dates show when the source was published or when we last checked it.
The Funded Trader had over 80,000 accounts at the time it paused operations.
financemagnates.comMetaQuotes told brokers they risked losing their MetaTrader licences if they continued serving prop firms; Eightcap, one of several brokers serving The Funded Trader, stopped offering prop-firm services from 29 February 2024.
fxnewsgroup.comOn 28 March 2024, CEO Angelo Ciaramello announced The Funded Trader had temporarily paused all operations, following weeks of complaints about payout denials.
financemagnates.comIn a March 2024 livestream Ciaramello presented a graphic claiming over $17M paid to clients in January-February 2024 against just over $2M in blocked withdrawals, attributing the rejections to KYC, fraud and prohibited trading strategies. Finance Magnates reported the figures as presented rather than verified.
financemagnates.comThe Funded Trader did not operate for five months in 2024 and returned in August 2024.
financemagnates.com1,272 clients had been waiting for payouts since March 2024, by then over a year. Finance Magnates attributed the figure to an update published by The Funded Trader itself.
financemagnates.comThe Funded Trader posted that it reactivated 25,513 accounts from its March 2024 relaunch pause, paid 459 of them a total of $378,604, and put the resulting payout rate at 1.8%.
x.comThePropFirmGuide's shutdown tracker listed The Funded Trader's status as paused, partial recovery, not fully operational.
thepropfirmguide.comthefundedtrader.com was live and selling challenges when checked.
thefundedtrader.com
What we could not verify
These points came up in research but we could not confirm them against a source we trust, so we are not stating them as fact.
- Whether The Funded Trader was 'one of the largest' prop firms. No trade-press source we fetched ranks it by size, so the page states only the reported account figure.
- Whether the 80,000+ figure counts funded accounts or all accounts. The sources say 'accounts'; for a prop firm the two differ substantially, so the page does not call them funded.
- Whether Eightcap was The Funded Trader's primary broker. Contemporaneous trade press names the firm as a client of both Eightcap and ThinkMarkets in February 2024, so the page says 'one of the brokers serving it'.
- The $17M paid and $2M blocked figures were presented by Ciaramello on a livestream and were disputed publicly by traders at the time. They are not independently audited.
- The 25,513 / 459 / $378,604 figures are The Funded Trader's own published numbers. We have not seen them independently verified, and the 1.8% rate applies to the reactivated-account cohort rather than the firm overall.
- Current payout performance. The most recent trade-press figure we could source is from March 2025; we found no 2026 update, so nothing here should be read as describing the firm's position today.
- Any current Trustpilot score. Sources disagree and a live figure could not be retrieved, so none is quoted.
Top 5 alternatives compared
- 1Transparent disclosureBest for multi-asset traders
Us: FundedFast
Why we put ourselves first
Six asset classes in one challenge, no time limit on either evaluation phase, and a transparent Malta-registered corporate structure, the kind of jurisdictional clarity that matters after a scandal like TFT's.
From $49Split Up to 90%Time NoneBest for
Traders who want forex, crypto, indices, stocks, metals, or oil at a low, transparent entry cost with no time pressure.
Tradeoffs to know
No CME futuresMatchTrader only, no MT4/MT5 - 2Rank 2
FTMO
Why it makes the list
A decade of continuous operation and the industry's most-reviewed payout history make FTMO the lowest-risk choice for traders who got burned by instability elsewhere.
From $91 (EUR 79)Split 80-90%Time NoneBest for
Traders who prioritize a long operating history and brand trust over price.
Tradeoffs to know
EUR 79 minimum entry, about $91, the highest on this listFixed 80% profit split2-phase evaluation only - 3Rank 3
FundedNext
Why it makes the list
The highest funding ceiling on this list plus a guaranteed 24-hour payout window, a direct answer to the 'waited months for a payout' complaint that follows The Funded Trader.
From $32Split 80-95%Time Varies by programBest for
Traders who want the largest available account sizes and the fastest payout turnaround.
Tradeoffs to know
Comoros-registered, with less jurisdictional clarity than FTMO or FundedFastRules vary by program tier - 4Rank 4
FundingPips
Why it makes the list
For traders who came to The Funded Trader for low-cost entry, FundingPips matches that positioning with a more transparent, currently-stable operating history.
From $29Split 80-100%Time NoneBest for
Budget-conscious forex traders comfortable trading entirely on MatchTrader or cTrader.
Tradeoffs to know
80% default split (100% requires consistent scaling)No stocks - 5Rank 5
Alpha Capital Group
Why it makes the list
Alpha Capital's UK registration and consistent public reviews offer a different kind of reassurance than price alone: a firm operating under a well-understood legal jurisdiction.
From $50Split 80% (90% add-on)Time NoneBest for
Traders for whom operating jurisdiction and corporate transparency are the deciding factor.
Tradeoffs to know
$97 minimum entryFixed 5% daily / 10% max drawdown, less flexible than trailing-drawdown firms
How FundedFast handles this
FundedFast is a prop trading firm registered as Memento Enterprises Limited in Malta (EU), offering simulated trading challenges rather than real brokerage accounts. That is standard for the industry, and true of every firm on this page including The Funded Trader. Challenges start at $49 for a $5,000 account, scaling up to $400,000, with no time limit on either evaluation phase. The default profit split is 80%, upgradable to 90% for an extra fee at checkout. Payouts are weekly, typically processed in 24-48 hours, with a $50 minimum and the entry fee refunded on your first payout, a direct cash-flow commitment that costs us money if we don't actually pay. A single account covers forex, indices, crypto, stocks (CFDs), metals, and oil, with no restriction on holding positions over the weekend. Maximum per-trade risk is 3%, and a 50% consistency rule applies. The platform is MatchTrader exclusively. Honest weaknesses: FundedFast is a newer firm than FTMO, our $400,000 funding ceiling is below FundedNext's $4M, and we don't offer CME futures, since everything is simulated CFD trading. Traders who specifically need futures contracts or a longer public track record than ours should weigh that against the jurisdictional and payout-transparency advantages above.
When this is not the right fit
FundedFast isn't the right call in every case. If you specifically need CME futures contracts (ES, NQ, CL, GC), none of the firms ranked above specialize in that market; Tradeify or Topstep are better starting points. If your only priority is the single lowest entry price, FundingPips at $29 beats our $49. And if the length of a firm's public track record is your primary trust signal, FTMO's decade-plus history outweighs ours or any other firm founded more recently. Outside those cases, FundedFast is a strong fit, especially if you want low cost, broad asset coverage, and clear EU jurisdiction after evaluating a firm with The Funded Trader's history.
Which alternative fits your style?
The fastest way to pick. Each row maps a typical trader profile to the recommended replacement firm.
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Frequently asked
Is The Funded Trader still operating in 2026?
Yes. thefundedtrader.com is live and actively selling challenges as of mid-2026, more than two years after the firm paused operations in March 2024. That said, independent industry trackers still describe its recovery as partial rather than a full return to its prior scale, and by the firm's own disclosed figures, only a small fraction of the accounts it reactivated after the pause have actually been paid out.
What happened to The Funded Trader in 2024?
In February 2024, Eightcap, one of the brokers serving The Funded Trader, withdrew prop-firm trading services after MetaQuotes warned brokers they risked losing their MetaTrader licences if they kept serving prop firms. On March 28, 2024, CEO Angelo Ciaramello announced the firm was pausing all operations, following weeks of mounting complaints about denied withdrawals. In a livestreamed Q&A, Ciaramello presented a graphic claiming TFT had paid over $17M to traders in January-February 2024 while blocking just over $2M in withdrawals, citing KYC checks, fraud, and prohibited trading strategies. Finance Magnates reported those figures as presented rather than independently verified.
Has The Funded Trader paid back traders since the 2024 crisis?
Partially. In April 2025 the firm posted that it had reactivated 25,513 accounts from the March 2024 pause and paid only 459 of them, totalling $378,604, a rate it put at 1.8%. In March 2025 Finance Magnates reported 1,272 clients still waiting for payment since March 2024, by then over a year. Both figures originate with The Funded Trader rather than an independent audit, and the most recent we could source is from March 2025, so treat any current payout claims from the firm with the same scrutiny you'd apply to any prop firm's marketing.
Is FundedFast safe? Could it shut down or freeze payouts too?
No prop firm is risk-free; that's the honest answer. FundedFast operates as Memento Enterprises Limited, registered in Malta (EU), and we refund the challenge fee on your first payout, which is a real cash-flow commitment on our end, not just a marketing line. We publish weekly payouts with a low $50 minimum. Before funding any prop firm, including us, check for a public payout history, a clear operating jurisdiction, and transparent rules. The lowest sticker price is not enough on its own.
What should I check before joining any prop firm after a story like this?
Five signals worth checking: (1) a public, verifiable payout history rather than just marketing claims, (2) a clear operating jurisdiction with real corporate registration, (3) transparent fee structures with no hidden activation costs, (4) a Trustpilot or review base large enough to see patterns rather than a handful of curated reviews, and (5) how the firm has handled past disruptions, if any. The Funded Trader's 2024 crisis is a useful case study precisely because so much of it happened in public.
How is FundedFast different from The Funded Trader?
The clearest difference is jurisdiction and payout transparency: FundedFast is registered in Malta (EU) as Memento Enterprises Limited, while The Funded Trader has reportedly restructured toward an offshore corporate structure since 2024. FundedFast refunds your challenge fee on first payout and pays weekly with a $50 minimum; The Funded Trader's own disclosed 2024-2025 figures show a payout completion rate under 2% on reactivated accounts. Both are simulated-account prop firms, not brokers. Neither is regulated by a financial authority, which is standard for this industry.
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