City Traders Imperium (CTI) is a trading firm offering forex and CFD-focused funding programs with several routes to funded trading. Its current lineup includes a 1-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge, Instant Funding and Direct Funding, allowing traders to choose between evaluation-based and straight-to-funded models.
How City Traders Imperium Works
CTI’s current programs are structured around different approaches to risk and evaluation.
The main options are:
- 1-Step Challenge: one evaluation phase
- 2-Step Challenge: two evaluation phases
- Instant Funding: funded from day one
- Direct Funding: full account balance from day one
The programs have different drawdown rules, profit-sharing structures and trading restrictions, so the account type is an important part of the decision.
CTI 1-Step Challenge
The 1-Step Challenge requires traders to reach an 8% profit target while staying within a 5% balance-based trailing drawdown.
There is:
- No daily drawdown limit
- No time limit
- Minimum 3 profitable trading days
- News trading allowed
- Overnight and weekend holding allowed
- Expert Advisors allowed, including third-party EAs
- Martingale and grid-style strategies permitted under the current 1-Step rules
The starting profit share after passing is 80%, with the possibility of increasing it through CTI’s VIP structure.
The trailing drawdown is particularly important. As the account’s highest balance increases, the drawdown floor moves upward, so traders need to understand how the trailing mechanism affects available risk.
CTI 2-Step Challenge
The 2-Step Challenge follows a more traditional evaluation structure.
Phase 1
10% profit target
Phase 2
5% profit target
The account has:
- 10% maximum static drawdown
- 5% maximum daily drawdown
- Minimum 3 profitable trading days per phase
- No time limit
- News trading allowed
- Overnight holding allowed
- Weekend holding allowed
- Personal EAs permitted
- Third-party EAs and Martingale strategies not permitted
After completing both phases, the starting profit share is 80%, with the possibility of increasing through CTI’s VIP program.
The static maximum drawdown means the maximum-loss level does not trail upward as the account grows.
CTI Instant Funding
Instant Funding removes the traditional evaluation process.
Traders receive an account from day one, but the starting capital is 50% of the advertised fully funded account size. The program has a 6% static maximum drawdown and no daily drawdown limit.
The starting profit share is 50%, with the account able to scale as the trader reaches the required milestones.
CTI currently lists:
- News trading allowed
- Overnight trading allowed
- Weekend holding allowed
- Personal EAs allowed
- No Martingale
- No time limit
- MetaTrader 5 and Match-Trader
The first payout becomes available after the account reaches the applicable requirements and becomes fully funded.
CTI Direct Funding
Direct Funding is CTI’s straight-to-funded option with the full account balance available from day one.
The current program starts with:
- 70% profit share
- 6% static maximum drawdown
- No daily drawdown
- No evaluation
- No time limit
- News trading allowed
- Overnight and weekend holding allowed
- Personal EAs allowed
- Martingale not allowed
The first payout is available from day 5, subject to the program’s requirements. CTI currently lists account sizes from $5,000 to $80,000 for Direct Funding.
Direct Funding can then scale through 10% profit milestones, with CTI stating a maximum of $2 million per account and $4 million across two accounts under its current structure.
Profit Split and Payouts
CTI’s profit split depends heavily on the program.
| Program | Starting Profit Share |
|---|---|
| 1-Step | 80% |
| 2-Step | 80% |
| Instant Funding | 50% |
| Direct Funding | 70% |
The firm’s VIP program can increase the profit share depending on the trader’s progression. CTI currently advertises potential profit sharing of up to 100% through its VIP structure.
Payout timing also differs between programs. For example, CTI currently advertises the first payout for its 1-Step and 2-Step programs after 7 days, while Direct Funding allows the first payout from day 5 under its stated conditions.
Trading Rules
One of CTI’s notable features is that it allows several trading styles, although the permitted strategies depend on the selected program.
News trading, overnight positions and weekend holding are currently permitted across the main programs. However, EA and Martingale rules differ.
The 1-Step Challenge is particularly flexible, allowing personal and third-party EAs as well as Martingale strategies. The 2-Step program is more restrictive, permitting personal EAs but not third-party EAs or Martingale.
This distinction is important for automated traders because choosing the wrong program could make an otherwise acceptable strategy incompatible with the account rules.
Free Trial
CTI currently offers a 14-day free trial using a virtual $100,000 account.
The trial provides access to MetaTrader 5 or Match-Trader and allows traders to test the firm’s stated spreads and execution conditions before purchasing a program. It is a simulated account and does not include payouts.
This gives prospective traders an opportunity to become familiar with the platform and trading conditions before committing to a paid account.
What Stands Out About City Traders Imperium?
The main feature of CTI is the range of funding structures.
A trader can choose a conventional two-phase evaluation, a single-stage evaluation, or skip the evaluation entirely through Instant or Direct Funding. The risk models also differ, particularly between static and trailing drawdown programs.
Another notable feature is the flexibility around news, overnight and weekend trading.
However, the differences between programs mean traders need to read the rules for the exact account they intend to purchase rather than applying one set of CTI rules to every program.
What Traders Should Consider
Before purchasing a CTI account, traders should compare:
- Profit target
- Daily drawdown
- Maximum drawdown
- Static vs. trailing drawdown
- Profit split
- Payout requirements
- Minimum profitable days
- EA restrictions
- Martingale rules
- News trading rules
- Weekend and overnight rules
- Scaling limits
For example, the 1-Step has an 8% target and 5% trailing drawdown, while the 2-Step requires 10% and 5% targets with 5% daily and 10% static maximum drawdown. These are materially different risk structures.
City Traders Imperium Review: Final Verdict
City Traders Imperium offers several funding models for forex and CFD traders, ranging from traditional evaluations to direct funding.
Its 1-Step Challenge may appeal to traders who want a single evaluation phase and more flexibility around EAs and trading strategies, while the 2-Step Challenge uses a more conventional two-phase structure. Traders who want to skip an evaluation can instead consider Instant Funding or Direct Funding, each with its own capital and profit-sharing structure.
The key when evaluating CTI is to look beyond the advertised account size or maximum profit share. Drawdown methodology, payout requirements, trading restrictions and the differences between funding programs are the details that determine how the account actually works.
Disclaimer: This review is for educational and informational purposes only. Prop-firm rules, fees, account conditions and payout policies can change. Traders should verify the current City Traders Imperium terms before purchasing a program.