Another Prop Firm Suspends Operations, Claims It Was “Attacked and Blackmailed”

Tuesday, 10/09/2024 | 07:25 GMT by Damian Chmiel
  • Fundedlions announced that it is forced to stop its prop activities temporarily.
  • The firm blames brokerage technology provider Dominion Markets for this situation.
closed

Last week, Fundedlions disappeared from the rapidly changing map of prop firms. CEO Noman Iqbal asked users not to access their accounts for a few days as the company would be migrating to MetaTrader 5.

Why Prop Firm Fundedlions Suspended Operations

In a letter addressed to clients, Iqbal states that the technology provider Dominion Markets is allegedly responsible for the company's problems. According to the CEO, this is not the first time Fundedlions has been “attacked and blackmailed” by its business partner.

Explanations posted on the company's official Discord reveal that Dominion Markets recently quadrupled the cost of creating an account, adding “unreasonable” additional fees.

“This week, they crossed the line by billing us again for active accounts we had already paid for. This has made it extremely challenging for us to continue operating on their platform,” Iqbal explained.

Dominion Markets is an FX/CFD broker with offices in Dubai, Cyprus, and India. Its offering includes the cTrader platform, which prop firm clients have likely used until now.

Due to potential liquidity maintenance issues, Fundedlions has decided to switch to a different platform over the next few days. According to the CEO's information, this will be MetaTrader 5.

“We strongly advise our traders to pause trading on their accounts for now,” added Iqbal. “Rest assured, we have saved all client data, and we anticipate completing the migration within 7 working days.”

The message was published on September 6 (last Friday), giving Fundedlions until next Monday to fulfill its promise on time.

Acquisitions, Closures, and Strange Withdrawal Requirements

As mentioned at the beginning, the prop trading industry is changing dynamically. Some firms are failing, and new ones are almost immediately appearing in their place.

A few weeks ago, Finance Magnates reported that UK-based Indigo Trader Funding officially suspended operations as it “failed in this business endeavor.” The official announcement came only a day after the company's name was officially removed from the company registry. It applied for the strike-off on August 12.

A few days later, broker AXE acquired prop trading firm Forex Funder, which had 6,000 active clients and 600 funded accounts. The acquisition was valued at “a few million” dollars.

The acquisition of The Forex Funder came as part of an ongoing trend of buying out distressed prop trading firms. Recently, Sway Funded acquired the now-closed Karma Prop Traders. Astra Capital also surprised the industry by revealing its intentions to “acquire every prop firm that closes or suspends operations, taking on all of their traders” and introducing them to its platform.

There was also considerable discussion about Apex Traded Funding's latest idea, which changed the rules for client withdrawals. Allegedly, the prop firm began requiring clients to make significant efforts, potentially violating the privacy of their strategies and themselves. Traders were supposed to record all their screens while investing and have cameras constantly pointed at their faces.

Last week, Fundedlions disappeared from the rapidly changing map of prop firms. CEO Noman Iqbal asked users not to access their accounts for a few days as the company would be migrating to MetaTrader 5.

Why Prop Firm Fundedlions Suspended Operations

In a letter addressed to clients, Iqbal states that the technology provider Dominion Markets is allegedly responsible for the company's problems. According to the CEO, this is not the first time Fundedlions has been “attacked and blackmailed” by its business partner.

Explanations posted on the company's official Discord reveal that Dominion Markets recently quadrupled the cost of creating an account, adding “unreasonable” additional fees.

“This week, they crossed the line by billing us again for active accounts we had already paid for. This has made it extremely challenging for us to continue operating on their platform,” Iqbal explained.

Dominion Markets is an FX/CFD broker with offices in Dubai, Cyprus, and India. Its offering includes the cTrader platform, which prop firm clients have likely used until now.

Due to potential liquidity maintenance issues, Fundedlions has decided to switch to a different platform over the next few days. According to the CEO's information, this will be MetaTrader 5.

“We strongly advise our traders to pause trading on their accounts for now,” added Iqbal. “Rest assured, we have saved all client data, and we anticipate completing the migration within 7 working days.”

The message was published on September 6 (last Friday), giving Fundedlions until next Monday to fulfill its promise on time.

Acquisitions, Closures, and Strange Withdrawal Requirements

As mentioned at the beginning, the prop trading industry is changing dynamically. Some firms are failing, and new ones are almost immediately appearing in their place.

A few weeks ago, Finance Magnates reported that UK-based Indigo Trader Funding officially suspended operations as it “failed in this business endeavor.” The official announcement came only a day after the company's name was officially removed from the company registry. It applied for the strike-off on August 12.

A few days later, broker AXE acquired prop trading firm Forex Funder, which had 6,000 active clients and 600 funded accounts. The acquisition was valued at “a few million” dollars.

The acquisition of The Forex Funder came as part of an ongoing trend of buying out distressed prop trading firms. Recently, Sway Funded acquired the now-closed Karma Prop Traders. Astra Capital also surprised the industry by revealing its intentions to “acquire every prop firm that closes or suspends operations, taking on all of their traders” and introducing them to its platform.

There was also considerable discussion about Apex Traded Funding's latest idea, which changed the rules for client withdrawals. Allegedly, the prop firm began requiring clients to make significant efforts, potentially violating the privacy of their strategies and themselves. Traders were supposed to record all their screens while investing and have cameras constantly pointed at their faces.

About the Author: Damian Chmiel
Damian Chmiel
  • 1787 Articles
  • 39 Followers
About the Author: Damian Chmiel
Damian's adventure with financial markets began at the Cracow University of Economics, where he obtained his MA in finance and accounting. Starting from the retail trader perspective, he collaborated with brokerage houses and financial portals in Poland as an independent editor and content manager. His adventure with Finance Magnates began in 2016, where he is working as a business intelligence analyst.
  • 1787 Articles
  • 39 Followers

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