Trading Objectives & Rules

City Traders Imperium Rules Architecture

City Traders Imperium operates with an emphasis on professional institutional risk management. While CTI offers pure balance-based drawdowns that do not penalize unrealized floating equity swings, it enforces strict operational rules that retail traders must master.

Rule / Parameter	Day Trading 1-Step	Day Trading 2-Step	Direct Funding
Mandatory Stop-Loss	Required within 60s	Required within 60s	Required within 60s
SL Auto-Liquidation	Active at 61 seconds	Active at 61 seconds	Active at 61 seconds
Daily Loss Basis	None ($0)	5% Balance-Based	None ($0)
News Trading	Allowed (No Bracketing)	Allowed (No Bracketing)	Allowed (No Bracketing)
News Bracketing	❌ Strictly Banned	❌ Strictly Banned	❌ Strictly Banned
Weekend Holding	✅ Permitted	✅ Permitted	✅ Permitted
Commercial EAs	❌ Banned (Must Be Unique)	❌ Banned (Must Be Unique)	❌ Banned (Must Be Unique)
Max Combined Capital	$4,000,000	$4,000,000	$4,000,000

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Critical Hidden Rules & Execution Constraints

1. The Mandatory 60-Second Stop-Loss Rule

The defining operational rule at City Traders Imperium is its universal stop-loss requirement:

• Server-Side Enforcement: Every market order executed on MT5 or cTrader must carry an active stop-loss order sent directly to the broker server order book within 60 seconds.
• Automated Risk Engine Liquidation: If an order reaches 61 seconds from execution without an attached stop-loss price, CTI's server risk module executes an immediate automated market close, prematurely terminating the position.
• The EA Trap (Virtual Stops): Many retail algorithmic Expert Advisors employ "hidden" or "stealth" stop-losses designed to prevent broker stop-hunting. Because these stops exist only in local computer RAM, CTI's server cannot see them. At 61 seconds, the risk engine will auto-close the trade regardless of your EA settings.
• Stop-Loss Modification: You are permitted to trail or adjust your stop-loss price after placement, provided an active stop-loss order remains attached to the position at all times until closure.

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2. Prohibited News Bracketing (Straddle Trading)

While CTI allows directional swing and day trades to remain open through high-impact red-folder news:

• News Bracketing Defined: Placing opposing pending orders (e.g., Buy Stop at 1.0850 and Sell Stop at 1.0810) within 15 minutes prior to major economic releases (such as US Non-Farm Payrolls, CPI, or FOMC) to capture instantaneous breakout volatility.
• Penalty: Any pending orders executed via news bracketing are subject to profit forfeiture, and repeated occurrences result in immediate challenge termination.

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3. Commercial EA & Copy Trading Restrictions

To preserve proprietary risk capital from correlated mass-liquidation events:

• Mass-Market Commercial EAs Banned: Utilizing public, commercially sold Expert Advisors (purchased from MQL5 Market or retail vendors) that are simultaneously deployed by dozens of other retail traders is prohibited.
• Proprietary & Customized EAs Allowed: Personal algorithms developed by the trader or heavily customized open-source algorithms with unique risk parameters and magic numbers are fully compliant.
• Trade Copying: Copy trading is permitted only across accounts registered in your own name. Mirroring external trade signals or account management services results in permanent disqualification.

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4. Lot Size Consistency & Risk Sizing Guidelines

CTI evaluates trading consistency to differentiate systematic traders from high-stakes gamblers:

• No Lot Size Spikes: Suddenly jumping from a typical position size of 1.0 lot to 10.0 lots to "gamble" on an evaluation target is prohibited.
• Even Distribution: Profit targets must be achieved through a coherent distribution of trades rather than a single abnormal lucky bet.