AquaFunded rules & hidden risks
United Arab EmiratesDubai prop firm selling instant, 1-step and 2-step CFD and futures accounts since 2023
Our grade
Weak
4.7 / 10 · ranked #9 of 10
AquaFunded hidden rules
The fine print, highlighted
Hidden Risk score
7.0/10
Very high risk
Average: 6.3
Most of the ways traders lose AquaFunded accounts or payouts are not on the pricing table: per-position floating-loss caps that end accounts at -1% or -2%, a Wave Stop that halves the split, consistency and qualifying-day rules that delay withdrawals, payout-time deductions for news, tick scalping and margin use, and manual risk reviews that can deny a payout for copy trading or shared IPs. Rules change by purchase date every few weeks.
- highlot-size
Floating-loss caps close accounts instantly
A combined floating loss of -2% of the starting balance permanently closes Instant Pro and funded AquaMan accounts (-1% on $300k and $400k), and -1% closes Instant Flex and Pay After Pass accounts, even with daily and max loss limits untouched. Closing the trade at a smaller loss does not undo the violation.
Source - highdrawdown
Wave Stop and strike systems cut your split
On funded 2-step and 1-Step Standard accounts a -2% open loss closes every position; the first hit cuts the split to 50% and the second breaches the account. Instant Standard and funded 1-Step Flex use -1% strikes (50%, then 25%, then breach).
Source - highdiscretion
Discretionary risk reviews at payout
The T&C let AquaFunded deny withdrawals or terminate accounts for 'insufficient' risk management, and the FAQ says some violations are only confirmed in manual review. Recent denials cite copy or reverse trading with unidentified accounts, shared IPs, devices or VPS use.
Source - mediumconsistency
Consistency rules reset every cycle
Instant Standard, Pay After Pass and AquaMan require the best day to be under 15% of the cycle's profit, Instant Pro 20% (limited time) and funded 2-Step Pro 50%. A 15% cap means at least seven profitable days per payout.
Source - mediumconsistency
Qualifying days need +0.5% profit
Minimum trading days only count days that finish at least 0.5% up: 3 on most evaluations, 5 on Instant Standard, Instant Pro and funded Pay After Pass and AquaMan accounts, 7 on Instant Flex.
Source - mediumnews
News profit capped at 0.5% per cycle
On funded CFD accounts opened after 27 Apr 2026, profit from trades opened or closed within 5 minutes of any red-folder or FOMC event on ForexFactory or Myfxbook is capped at 0.5% of the starting balance; the rest is removed at payout, whatever currency you traded.
Source - mediumstrategy
Tick-scalping and margin deductions
Trades held under 2 minutes may be classed as tick scalping and their profit removed on funded accounts, and any trade using more than 80% of available margin has its profit deducted.
Source - mediumpayout
Payout caps on larger and flex accounts
Accounts of $100k or more are capped at $10,000 on each of the first two payouts; Instant Flex withdrawals are capped at 5% of the starting balance per cycle, with the excess deducted; crypto payouts are only available under $5,000.
Source - mediumcosts
3% fee on every payout
All CFD and futures payouts are subject to a 3% processing fee deducted from the requested amount, on top of the profit split.
Source - mediumother
Rules change by purchase date
Between August and September 2026 the firm changed Pay After Pass (4 Aug), 1-Step Flex drawdown and 2-Step Pro consistency (31 Aug) and both instant models (8 Sep); your rules depend on when you bought, and the T&C incorporate the FAQ as amended.
Source - lowaccount
Short inactivity windows
CFD accounts are breached after 30 days without a trade; futures accounts after 7 calendar days, weekends included, with no reinstatement.
Source - lowkyc
Country limits and instant-only caps
Fifteen countries plus Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk are barred, and traders in Thailand, Brazil, Bulgaria, Japan, Jordan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines may only buy instant accounts up to $50k; the futures list of restricted countries is far longer.
Source
AquaFunded rulebook
Grouped from the terms, FAQ and help center
Drawdown
- Daily loss limits reset at 00:00 UTC and are measured from the higher of balance or equity at the reset: 3% on 1-step and instant models (2% on Instant Flex), 4% on 2-Step Elite, 5% on 2-Step Standard and Pro.
- Max loss is static on 2-Step Standard (8%), 2-Step Elite (10%) and 1-Step Flex (12%), and trailing on 1-Step Standard (6%), 2-Step Pro (10%), Instant Pro (6%), Instant Flex (4%), Pay After Pass (5%) and Instant Standard (5%, end of day).
- Floating-loss caps: -2% of starting balance closes Instant Pro and funded AquaMan accounts (-1% on $300k and $400k); -1% closes Instant Flex and Pay After Pass accounts; on Instant Standard and funded 1-Step Flex each -1% hit is a strike (split to 50%, then 25%, then breach).
- Wave Stop on funded 2-step and 1-Step Standard accounts: a -2% open loss closes all positions; the first hit cuts the split to 50% and the second breaches the account.
- Futures use end-of-day trailing max loss that stops trailing near the payout buffer, and soft daily loss limits that pause trading for the rest of the day.
Prohibited strategies
- Tick scalping, high-frequency trading, latency, reverse and hedge arbitrage, and exploiting delayed data or platform freezes; trades under two minutes may be treated as tick scalping on funded accounts.
- Third-party or off-the-shelf strategies marketed to pass challenges, and switching strategy between evaluation and funded accounts.
- Hedging across accounts or with other traders, and copying anyone else's trades; copying between your own accounts is allowed.
- Changing the platform password issued by AquaFunded.
- Futures: fully automated bots, 100 or more trades in a day, layering or order stacking, trading within 2% of a CME price limit, and offsetting mini and micro positions.
News & timing
- Evaluations: news trading is allowed without limits.
- Funded CFD accounts opened after 27 Apr 2026: profit from trades opened or closed within 5 minutes of red-folder or FOMC events (ForexFactory and Myfxbook calendars) is capped at 0.5% of the starting balance per payout cycle; earlier accounts may not trade that window at all.
- No trade for 30 days breaches a CFD account; futures accounts are breached after 7 calendar days.
- CFD positions may be held overnight and over weekends; futures positions are closed automatically at the 20:10 UTC session close.
Gambling & risk
- Using more than 80% of available margin on one trade or position is a violation; the profit is deducted and repeat cases can lead to a reset or breach.
- The T&C allow account termination or withdrawal denial for excessive risk per trade, excessive cumulative risk across overlapping trades, or 'boom or bust' bets around news.
- There is no maximum lot size, and martingale and trading without a stop loss are allowed.
- Some violations are only confirmed in a manual risk review, which can happen at any stage, including at payout.
Consistency
- Instant Standard, Pay After Pass (funded) and AquaMan: best day under 15% of the cycle's profit before a payout request.
- Instant Pro: 20% for accounts bought from 8 Sep 2026 (limited time), 15% before; 2-Step Pro funded: 50% (25% for purchases before 31 Aug 2026).
- Futures: 40% on funded Standard accounts, 50% during the Flex challenge, 40% during the Daily evaluation and 20% per cycle on Instant.
- Qualifying days need +0.5% profit: 3 on 1-Step Standard and the 2-step models (funded only on 2-Step Pro and 1-Step Flex), 5 on Instant Standard, Instant Pro and funded Pay After Pass and AquaMan accounts, 7 on Instant Flex.
Payouts
- First request 14 days after the first funded trade, then 14 days after the first trade following each payout; paid add-ons shorten this to 7 days (evaluations) or on demand (instant).
- Minimum $100 on CFD accounts and $500 on futures; crypto only under $5,000, Rise (bank or crypto) from $500.
- A 3% processing fee is deducted from every payout.
- On $100k+ accounts the first two payouts are capped at $10,000 each; Instant Flex payouts are capped at 5% of the starting balance per cycle.
- Evaluation fees are refunded with the fourth payout; a hard breach before then forfeits the refund, and instant fees are never refunded.
Account & KYC
- KYC and the payout contract run through Rise before the first payout.
- Fifteen countries plus Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk are barred; nine more (including Thailand, Brazil, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines) are limited to instant accounts with a $50k cap.
- Funded CFD accounts can be merged up to $400,000 (instant accounts cannot be merged); futures traders can run up to 5 funded accounts.
- Accounts are personal: no third-party cards, account sharing or account management; shared IP addresses and devices are reviewed and have been cited in payout denials.
- The T&C limit traders to one active account per challenge level without written approval, while the FAQ says multiple evaluations can run at once.
Drawdown and targets by program
15 programs
| Program | Targets | Daily loss | Max loss | How drawdown works | Min days | Time limit | News | Leverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instant Funding Pro | None | 3% | 6% trailing | Daily loss of 3% measured from the higher of balance or equity at 00:00 UTC. Max loss trails 6% below the highest equity reached (floating profit included) and never locks. A combined floating loss of -2% of the starting balance (-1% on $300k and $400k) permanently closes the account. | 5 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:50 FX, 1:10 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto |
| Instant Funding Standard | None | 3% | 5% eod trailing | Daily loss of 3% below the higher of balance or equity at the 00:00 UTC reset. Max loss sits 5% of the initial balance below the highest reset-time balance or equity and only moves up. Each time combined floating loss reaches -1% of the starting balance it is a strike: the first cuts the split to 50%, the second to 25%, the third breaches the account. | 5 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:50 FX, 1:10 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto |
| Instant Flex | None | 2% | 4% trailing | Daily loss of 2% from the 00:00 UTC balance or equity. Max loss trails 4% below the highest equity reached. A combined floating loss of -1% of the starting balance permanently closes the account. | 7 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:50 FX, 1:10 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto |
| 1 Step Standard | 9% | 3% | 6% trailing | Daily loss of 3% below the higher of the prior day's closing balance or equity (00:00 UTC). Max loss trails 6% of the starting balance below the highest balance or equity reached, in evaluation and funded stages. Funded accounts also run Wave Stop: a -2% open loss closes every trade, the first hit cuts the split to 50% and the second breaches the account. | 3 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| 1 Step Flex | 10% | 3% | 12% static | Daily loss of 3% below the higher of the prior day's closing balance or equity. Max loss is a static 12% of the starting balance for accounts bought from 31 Aug 2026 (10% before). Funded accounts carry a 1% WaveStop: each -1% floating loss is a strike (split to 50%, then 25%, then breach). | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| 2 Step Standard | 8% / 5% | 5% | 8% static | Daily loss of 5% below the higher of the prior day's closing balance or equity (00:00 UTC). Max loss is static at 8% of the starting balance. Funded Wave Stop: a -2% open loss closes every trade, the first hit halves the split and the second breaches the account. | 3 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| 2 Step Pro | 10% / 5% | 5% | 10% trailing | Daily loss of 5% below the higher of the prior day's balance or equity. Max loss trails 10% of the starting balance below the highest balance or equity reached and does not lock. Funded Wave Stop applies (-2% open loss closes all trades; second hit breaches). | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| 2 Step Elite | 8% / 5% | 4% | 10% static | Daily loss of 4% below the higher of balance or equity at 00:00 UTC. Max loss is static at 10% of the starting balance. Funded Wave Stop applies (-2% open loss closes all trades; second hit breaches). | 3 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| Pay After Pass (Pay Later) | 3% | 3% | 5% trailing | No daily loss limit during the evaluation (except on the $5k size); funded accounts get a 3% daily limit. Max loss trails 5% below the highest equity reached. A combined floating loss of -1% of the starting balance permanently closes the account. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX in evaluation, 1:50 FX funded (1:10 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto) |
| AquaMan | 2% | 3% | 6% trailing | Daily loss of 3% of the initial balance from the 00:00 UTC balance or equity. Max loss trails 6% below the highest balance or equity (5% on $400k) and locks at the starting balance once the account is 6% up. On funded accounts a floating loss of -2% of the starting balance (-1% on $300k and $400k) permanently closes the account. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 30 days without a trade) | Restricted | 1:100 FX, 1:20 indices and commodities, 1:2 crypto in evaluation; 1:50 / 1:10 / 1:2 once funded |
| AquaFunded Futures Standard | 6% | 2% | 4% eod trailing | Percentages for $50k. End-of-day trailing max loss of $2,000 / $3,500 / $5,000 (50k/100k/150k) that stops trailing at $52,100 / $103,600 / $155,100; after any payout the floor locks at starting balance + $100. The daily loss limit ($1,000 / $2,000 / $3,000) is a soft breach that pauses trading for the day. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 7 days without a trade) | Allowed | Up to 4 minis / 40 micros (50k), 8 / 80 (100k), 12 / 120 (150k) |
| AquaFunded Futures Flex (with daily loss limit) | 6% | 2.4% | 4% eod trailing | Percentages for $50k. End-of-day trailing max loss of $2,000 / $3,000 / $4,500 (50k/100k/150k); soft daily loss limit of $1,200 / $1,700 / $3,000 that pauses trading for the day. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 7 days without a trade) | Allowed | Up to 4 / 8 / 12 contracts (50k / 100k / 150k) |
| AquaFunded Futures Flex (no daily loss limit) | 6% | None | 4% eod trailing | Percentages for $50k. End-of-day trailing max loss of $2,000 / $3,000 / $4,500 (50k/100k/150k); no daily loss limit in the challenge or funded stage. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 7 days without a trade) | Allowed | Up to 4 / 8 / 12 contracts (50k / 100k / 150k) |
| AquaFunded Futures Daily | 6% | 2% | 4% eod trailing | Percentages for $50k. End-of-day trailing max loss of $2,000 / $2,500 / $3,500 (50k/100k/150k) that stops trailing at $52,100 / $103,600 / $155,100; soft daily loss limit of $1,000 / $1,250 / $1,750. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 7 days without a trade) | Allowed | Up to 4 minis / 40 micros (50k), 8 / 80 (100k), 12 / 120 (150k) |
| AquaFunded Futures Instant | None | 2.5% | 4% eod trailing | Percentages for $50k. End-of-day max loss of $1,500 / $2,000 / $3,500 / $4,500 (25k/50k/100k/150k); soft daily loss limit of $1,000 / $1,250 / $2,500 / $3,000. | 0 | Unlimited (breached after 7 days without a trade) | Allowed | 1 mini / 10 micros (25k) up to 12 minis / 120 micros (150k) |
What AquaFunded allows
Strategies
- Restricted
EAs / bots · Restricted
Own-strategy EAs allowed on CFD accounts; third-party 'pass' EAs, HFT and arbitrage banned, VPS use has been cited in payout denials, and fully automated bots are banned on futures
- Restricted
News trading · Restricted
Unrestricted in evaluations; on funded CFD accounts profit from trades opened or closed within 5 minutes of red-folder news is capped at 0.5% of starting balance per cycle; allowed on futures
- Restricted
Weekend holding · Restricted
Allowed on CFD accounts; futures positions are closed automatically at each session close
- Restricted
Overnight holding · Restricted
Allowed on CFD accounts; futures positions are auto-closed at 20:10 UTC daily
- Restricted
Copy trading · Restricted
Only between accounts you own (including external ones); copying other traders or signal groups is banned and 'coordinated trading' is a common payout-denial reason
- Restricted
Hedging · Restricted
Allowed within one account only; hedging across accounts, traders or firms (and mini/micro offsets on futures) is banned
- Restricted
Scalping · Restricted
Allowed, but CFD trades held under 2 minutes may be classed as tick scalping and their profit removed; on futures under 50% of profit may come from trades under 10 seconds
Restricted countries: Albania, Algeria, Belarus, Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk (Ukraine), Cuba, Iran, Kenya, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, Vietnam.
AquaFunded rules FAQ
Questions traders ask
What are AquaFunded's hidden rules?
The account killers are floating-loss caps that close Instant Pro, Instant Flex and Pay After Pass accounts at -1% or -2% of the starting balance, and the Wave Stop that halves your split after a -2% open loss on funded evaluation accounts. Payouts are then slowed or trimmed by 15-20% consistency rules, trading days that only count at +0.5% profit, a 0.5% cap on news profit, tick-scalping and 80% margin deductions, a 3% payout fee and $10,000 caps on the first two payouts of $100k+ accounts. All of these sit in separate help-center articles rather than on the pricing table.
Can you trade news with AquaFunded?
In evaluations, yes, without limits. On funded CFD accounts opened after 27 April 2026, profit from trades opened or closed within 5 minutes of a red-folder or FOMC event is capped at 0.5% of the starting balance per payout cycle, and the event list comes from ForexFactory and Myfxbook regardless of the currency you trade. Futures accounts can trade news freely.
Are EAs allowed at AquaFunded?
On CFD accounts EAs are allowed if they run your own strategy, but off-the-shelf 'pass' EAs, high-frequency trading and arbitrage are banned, and several denied payouts cite VPS use or shared devices. AquaFunded Futures bans fully automated trading and more than 100 trades a day.
Does AquaFunded accept US traders?
The United States is not on AquaFunded's restricted list, and its Pay After Pass page marks Match-Trader and TradeLocker as available to US traders. MT5 may not be offered to US residents, so check the platform options at checkout.
What happens if I breach an AquaFunded account?
A hard breach closes the account permanently and you must buy a new one; there are no retries or resets from the failed stage. An evaluation fee you paid is only refunded with a fourth payout, so a breach before that forfeits it. The firm also says some violations are not detected automatically and are only confirmed later in a manual review, so an account can be breached after the fact.
AquaFunded 1-step vs 2-step: which is easier?
The 2-Step Standard (8% then 5%, 5% daily loss, 8% static max loss) is more forgiving than the 1-Step Standard, which needs 9% in one phase with a 3% daily limit and a 6% trailing max loss. If you want one phase, the 1-Step Flex is the easier pick: a 10% target against a 12% static drawdown and no minimum days.