The model in one paragraph#
A proprietary trading firm ("prop firm") lets you trade an account much larger than your own bankroll in exchange for proving, first, that you can trade inside its risk rules. You pay a one-time fee for an evaluation: a simulated account with a profit target and a loss limit. Hit the target without hitting the limit and the firm funds the account — you keep trading the same way, and a share of the profit (typically 70–90%) is paid out to you on a schedule. Crypto prop firms apply this model to crypto markets: perpetual futures at some firms, live on-chain spot tokens — including Solana memecoins — at others.
The part most first-time buyers miss: at almost every evaluation-based firm, the funded account is alsosimulated. You are not wiring someone's treasury into pump.fun. The firm tracks your simulated performance against real market prices and pays real money from its own revenue when you profit under its rules. Reputable firms say this plainly; be wary of any that imply otherwise.
The evaluation: what the fee buys#
The fee buys a rule set and an account. A typical crypto evaluation looks like this (numbers from Fullport's rulebook, which is representative of the on-chain spot niche):
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Account sizes | $5,000 / $10,000 / $25,000 (simulated) |
| One-time fee | $150 / $250 / $350 |
| Profit target | +30% of the starting balance |
| Max drawdown | 20%, trailing, locks at breakeven |
| Consistency | no single day > 50% of total profit |
| Time limit | none |
The two numbers that decide everything are the target and the drawdown, because their ratio sets how aggressively you must trade. A +30% target over a 20% floor means you can afford to be wrong, but not wrong first: the floor trails your equity up, so early losses spend the same budget as late ones. See drawdown rules, explained for the mechanics.
The funded account: where rules keep applying#
Funding is not graduation — it is the same account with a payout schedule attached. The drawdown floor keeps operating, and payouts come with their own parameters: a profit split (Fullport pays 80%), a cadence (every 5 days), and — at honest firms — published payout capsthat state the firm's maximum liability per account before you buy. Fullport's caps are $1,000–$3,000 per payout and three payouts per account, depending on size; after the third payout the account completes and you buy a new evaluation.
Caps are worth reading closely wherever you shop. A firm that will not state its maximum liability per account is asking you to trust that it can pay an unbounded claim from a bounded fee pool — which no business can.
Where the money actually comes from#
Evaluation fees. The economics are insurance-shaped: many traders pay a fixed fee, a minority pass and collect payouts, and the firm prices the fee against the expected payout per account. That is not a scandal — it is the model — but it has one implication you should verify: the firm's incentive is to fail you fairly (with rules you knew) or unfairly (with rules you find out about at payout time). The difference is whether the whole rulebook, fee schedule and payout math are published before checkout.
Five questions to ask before buying#
These separate a payable program from an expensive rulebook, in the order they bite:
| Ask | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| How are fills priced? | A delayed chart feed can be gamed, so the firm compensates with vague conduct rules. Fresh on-chain reads with price impact charged can't. |
| Is every rule published pre-checkout? | Post-hoc rules are how payouts get denied. |
| What are the payout caps and cadence? | The firm's liability model — and your realistic upside. |
| What does failure cost? | Resets sold as add-ons change the firm's incentives. |
| Are past payouts verifiable? | On-chain payouts have public transaction signatures; ask for them. |
Fullport Capital is a no-KYC crypto prop firm for Solana memecoin traders: one-step evaluations from $150, fills from fresh on-chain reads (fill policy), 80% split, payouts every 5 days in USDC or SOL. The whole rulebook is public — start with the rules and the FAQ.
Quick answers
- Is a crypto prop firm the same as a forex prop firm?
- The structure is the same — pay a fee, pass an evaluation, trade a funded account, split the profits — but crypto firms differ in what you trade (spot tokens or perps instead of currency pairs), how prices are sourced (on-chain reads versus a broker feed), and how you are paid (usually stablecoins on-chain instead of bank transfer).
- Do prop firms give you real money to trade?
- Almost never directly. Nearly all evaluation-based firms have you trade a simulated account against real market prices; the firm pays real money out of its own revenue when you profit under its rules. Reputable firms state this plainly.
- How do crypto prop firms make money?
- Primarily from evaluation fees. A sustainable firm prices fees against expected payouts and caps its liability per account; an unsustainable one relies on rules you only discover after you pay. Read the payout caps and the full rulebook before buying.
Fullport Capital
One-step evaluations on live pump.fun, LaunchLab and Meteora prices. 80% split, payouts every 5 days, no KYC. The whole rulebook is public.