City Traders Imperium Review
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City Traders Imperium rules, prices and payouts, checked on September 14, 2026 against citytradersimperium.com.
- Market
- Forex
- Programs
- 1-Step Challenge, 2-Step Challenge, Instant Funding, Direct Funding
- Accounts up to
- $100K
- Platforms
- MetaTrader 5, Match-Trader
City Traders Imperium (CTI) says it has been funding traders since 2018. Its evaluation programs are provided by City Traders Imperium Limited, registered in Anjouan in the Comoros Union with an operating address in San José, Costa Rica, while a Dubai company, CTI FZCO, runs its academy courses. Traders get forex, commodities, indices and crypto on MetaTrader 5 or Match-Trader.
CTI sells two very different products. The 1-Step and 2-Step Challenges are cheap one-time evaluations, and the 1-Step has no daily loss limit at all. Instant Funding and Direct Funding skip the evaluation, but you pay several times more for a small drawdown in dollar terms. News trading and weekend holds are allowed on every program, and the weak spot is payouts: CTI's own pages disagree on when the first one arrives.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Challenges start low: $29 for a $2,500 1-Step and $39 for a $2,500 2-Step, both one-time payments.
- The 1-Step Challenge has no daily loss limit and allows third-party EAs, including martingale and grid systems.
- News trading and weekend and overnight holds are allowed on all four programs.
- The 2-Step Challenge has a static 10% maximum drawdown measured from the initial balance.
- The profit split rises to 90% at VIP Bronze and 100% at VIP Silver, and those tiers add weekly and daily or on-demand payouts.
- Company details are published, including the Comoros company number, license number, and registered and operating addresses.
Cons
- The official pages conflict on payouts: the challenge pages say "1st Payout 7 days", while the program guide asks for 7 profitable trading days and at least 2%/$100 of profit, then monthly payouts.
- The 1-Step allows only a 5% drawdown, and it trails your balance; the pages checked don't mention a point where it stops.
- Instant Funding starts you at half the account size, and its split begins at 50% on Level 1.
- The no-evaluation programs cost far more per dollar of drawdown: $259 (Instant) and $399 (Direct) for a $10,000 account with $300 and $600 of room, against $99 for a $10,000 2-Step with a $1,000 limit.
- Consistency rules, leverage and activation fees weren't found on the pages checked, and the help center returned an access error, so it couldn't be read.
City Traders Imperium programs and prices
| Program | Accounts and prices | Profit target | Daily loss limit | Max drawdown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Step Challenge | $2.5K: $29 · $5K: $49 · $10K: $79 · $25K: $159 · $50K: $299 · $100K: $449 | 8% of starting balance | None | 5% of the starting balance |
| 2-Step Challenge | $2.5K: $39 · $5K: $59 · $10K: $99 · $25K: $199 · $50K: $329 · $100K: $549 | 10% (Phase 1) / 5% (Phase 2) | 5% of start-of-day balance | 10% of the initial balance |
| Instant Funding | $2.5K: $79 · $5K: $139 · $10K: $259 · $20K: $449 · $40K: $849 · $80K: $1,599 | No evaluation; 'Profit Target To Scale' $125 / $250 / $500 / $1,000 / $2,000 / $4,000; first payout after 10% profit (program guide) | None | $75 / $150 / $300 / $600 / $1,200 / $2,400 ('Just a 6% static drawdown' per program guide) |
| Direct Funding | $5K: $229 · $10K: $399 · $20K: $999 · $40K: $1,999 · $80K: $3,999 | No evaluation; 'Profit Target To Scale' $500 / $1,000 / $2,000 / $4,000 / $8,000 | None | $300 / $600 / $1,200 / $2,400 / $4,800 ('Just a 6% static drawdown' per program guide) |
1-Step Challenge rules
| Rule | 1-Step Challenge |
|---|---|
| Drawdown type | Trailing, balance based |
| Minimum trading days | 3 profitable trading days (at least 0.5% of initial balance net profit) |
| Profit split | 80% to 100% (90% at VIP Bronze, 100% at VIP Silver) |
| Payout frequency | 1st Payout 7 days (program page); see notes for conflicting guide |
Not clearly published by the firm: consistency rule, contracts / leverage, activation fee.
2-Step Challenge rules
| Rule | 2-Step Challenge |
|---|---|
| Drawdown type | Static (balance based) |
| Minimum trading days | 3 profitable trading days per phase |
| Profit split | 80% to 100% (90% at VIP Bronze, 100% at VIP Silver) |
| Payout frequency | 1st Payout 7 days (program page); see notes for conflicting guide |
Not clearly published by the firm: consistency rule, contracts / leverage, activation fee.
Instant Funding rules
| Rule | Instant Funding |
|---|---|
| Drawdown type | Static |
| Minimum trading days | 5 profitable days and at least 2%/$100 profit when requesting a payout |
| Profit split | 50% at Level 1, 70% at Level 2, 80% from Level 3; 90% at VIP Bronze, 100% at VIP Silver |
| Payout frequency | First withdrawal 5 days (price table); first payout after 10% profit, then bi-weekly (program guide) |
Not clearly published by the firm: consistency rule, contracts / leverage, activation fee.
Direct Funding rules
| Rule | Direct Funding |
|---|---|
| Drawdown type | Static |
| Minimum trading days | 5 profitable days and at least 2%/$100 profit when requesting a payout |
| Profit split | 70% at Level 2, 80% from Level 3; 90% at VIP Bronze, 100% at VIP Silver |
| Payout frequency | On-demand payouts (bi-weekly thereafter) per program guide; first withdrawal 5 days (price table) |
Not clearly published by the firm: consistency rule, contracts / leverage, activation fee.
Trading restrictions and platforms
- News trading: Allowed (all programs)
- Weekend holding: Allowed (weekend and overnight holds, all programs)
- EAs and bots: 1-Step: Expert Advisors allowed including third-party, martingale and grid allowed; 2-Step, Instant and Direct Funding: only EAs the trader personally owns ('Personal EAs only')
- Platforms: MetaTrader 5, Match-Trader
- Instruments: Forex, Commodities, Indices, Crypto
Who City Traders Imperium suits
CTI suits a budget-minded forex trader who wants a cheap challenge and the freedom to hold through news and weekends. The $2,500 and $5,000 challenges all cost $59 or less, so a failed attempt doesn't set you back much.
The 1-Step is the program for automated traders. It has no daily limit and accepts third-party EAs, martingale and grid, while the other three programs only accept EAs you personally own.
It's a worse fit if you need predictable payout timing, since CTI's pages give different answers. It also isn't the cheap route to a large balance without an evaluation: Instant Funding starts at half the account size, and both no-evaluation programs give you a small dollar drawdown.
How CTI's drawdown works, with examples
On a $100,000 1-Step Challenge, you need $8,000 of profit and there's no daily loss limit. The maximum drawdown is $5,000 (5% of the starting balance) and trails your balance, so a floor that starts at $95,000 moves to $98,000 once you close trades at $103,000. The pages checked don't mention a point where it stops trailing. You also need 3 profitable days of at least $500 net, which is 0.5% of the initial balance.
The 2-Step Challenge is easier to plan around. On $100,000, Phase 1 asks for $10,000 and Phase 2 for $5,000, with 3 profitable trading days in each phase. The overall floor is fixed at $90,000, and the daily limit is 5% of the start-of-day balance: start a day at $104,000 and you can lose $5,200 before breaching.
Instant Funding changes the math. A $10,000 Instant account starts with a $5,000 balance, its static drawdown is $300 (6% of that starting balance), and the target to scale is $500. A $10,000 Direct Funding account gives you $600 of drawdown and a $1,000 target to scale, which works out to 6% and 10% of the full $10,000.
What City Traders Imperium costs
Every CTI price is a single one-time payment, with no monthly billing and no struck-through list prices. The challenges are the cheapest way in: the 1-Step runs from $29 to $449 and the 2-Step from $39 to $549, across sizes from $2,500 to $100,000.
The no-evaluation programs cost far more. A $10,000 account is $79 as a 1-Step, $99 as a 2-Step, $259 as Instant Funding and $399 as Direct Funding. Measured by drawdown, the $99 2-Step gives you $1,000 of room, Direct Funding $600 and Instant Funding $300, so the extra money buys you a skipped evaluation, not more room to lose.
The pages checked don't say whether an activation fee applies after you pass, so check at checkout. If you fail an account, a reset is offered at a discount.
Payouts, profit split and VIP tiers
On both challenges the split runs from 80% to 100%, with 90% at VIP Bronze and 100% at VIP Silver. Instant Funding starts at 50% on Level 1, then 70% at Level 2 and 80% from Level 3, while Direct Funding's ladder starts at 70% at Level 2. VIP Bronze adds weekly payouts and VIP Silver daily or on-demand payouts, but the pages checked don't explain how you qualify for either tier.
The first payout is where CTI's pages disagree. The 1-Step and 2-Step pages say "1st Payout 7 days", but the program guide says both challenges need 7 profitable trading days and at least 2%/$100 of profit for the first payout, followed by monthly payouts. For Instant Funding, the price table says "First Withdrawal 5 days", while the guide says the first payout comes after 10% profit and then bi-weekly.
Direct Funding is described as on-demand in the guide, bi-weekly after that, with a 5-day first withdrawal in the price table. On both no-evaluation programs, a payout request also needs 5 profitable days and at least 2%/$100 of profit. Until CTI settles the conflict, plan around the slower reading.
Scaling limits are published: $200K per challenge account and $400K in total on the 1-Step page, and up to $2M per account ($4M in total) on Instant and Direct Funding.
Terms and rules to check before you buy
CTI's loss limits are clear, but several conditions aren't published. No consistency rule appears on the pages checked, which isn't the same as the firm saying there isn't one. Leverage wasn't found either, and the help center returned an access error, so its articles couldn't be read.
Minimum-day rules differ by program. The 1-Step needs 3 profitable days of at least 0.5% net, the 2-Step 3 profitable days per phase, and Instant and Direct Funding 5 profitable days when you request a payout. Only the 1-Step allows third-party EAs.
The terms PDF, uploaded in August 2026, says a client who violates any of the terms and conditions forfeits the right to receive any rewards (8.11). It also lets CTI restrict access "without any prior notice and without any compensation" if a client acts in a way that may damage the company's reputation (13.1). Read both before trading a funded account.
No warning signs came up in the checks for this review. Trustpilot showed no alert banner on CTI's page, and the FCA and FINMA warning lists had no matching entry.
Which CTI program fits which trader
The 2-Step Challenge gives the most room for the price. Its static 10% floor and 5% daily limit leave space to trade normally, and its main weakness is the unclear payout timing it shares with the 1-Step.
The 1-Step suits EA traders and anyone who dislikes daily limits, as long as a 5% trailing drawdown fits the way they trade. That's a tight margin against an 8% target.
Instant and Direct Funding suit traders who would rather pay more than sit an evaluation. Direct Funding costs more than Instant at the same size but gives twice the dollar drawdown and starts higher on the split ladder, while Instant's 50% starting split is its main drawback.
Verdict
City Traders Imperium fits a forex or CFD trader on a budget who wants to trade news, hold over weekends or run a third-party EA on the 1-Step, and the 2-Step Challenge is the easiest of its programs to plan around. Skip it if you need a clear payout schedule before you buy, because its program pages and guide give different answers. Be cautious with Instant Funding too: you start on half the account size with a 50% split, which makes it an expensive way to avoid an evaluation.
Frequently asked questions
Does City Traders Imperium have a daily drawdown limit?
Only the 2-Step Challenge has one: 5% of the start-of-day balance. The 1-Step Challenge, Instant Funding and Direct Funding have no daily loss limit, but each has a maximum drawdown: 5% trailing on the 1-Step and a 6% static drawdown on the two no-evaluation programs.
When can you get your first payout with City Traders Imperium?
CTI’s pages conflict. The challenge pages say the first payout comes at 7 days, while the program guide says you need 7 profitable trading days and at least 2%/$100 of profit, followed by monthly payouts. For Instant Funding, the price table says 5 days but the guide says after 10% profit, then bi-weekly.
Can you trade news and hold over the weekend with CTI?
Yes. News trading and weekend and overnight holds are allowed on all four programs: 1-Step, 2-Step, Instant Funding and Direct Funding.
Does City Traders Imperium allow EAs?
On the 1-Step Challenge, yes, including third-party EAs, martingale and grid. On the 2-Step, Instant Funding and Direct Funding, only EAs you personally own are allowed.
How does CTI Instant Funding work?
There’s no evaluation. The account starts at half its size, so a $10,000 account begins with a $5,000 balance, a $300 static drawdown and a $500 target to scale. The split starts at 50% on Level 1 and reaches 80% from Level 3.
Is City Traders Imperium legit?
CTI says it has funded traders since 2018 and names the company that provides its evaluation programs, City Traders Imperium Limited, registered in the Comoros Union with an operating address in Costa Rica. On September 14, 2026, Trustpilot showed no alert banner on its page and the FCA and FINMA warning lists had no matching entry. Its terms say you forfeit rewards if you breach any of them, so read them before trading.
