Your thoughts about algo trading with prop firms

Hi,

I'm not sure this is the right place to ask this but I would like to know if there are people here using algorithmic trading with a prop firm account like FTMO. Or what are your thoughts regarding the subject. I almost don't see any discussion about the topic and I'm curious why that is.

Obviously it's better to have our own account without the limitations but for those without a decent initial capital, prop firms apparently could be an alternative.

Considering the prop firm is serious, the main problem I see is with the maximum drawdown allowed (usually 10%). But with proper position sizing, money management and diversification, I suppose one could control the risk of having a DD higher than that. The returns would be lower but with enough capital, it would still be interesting.

Another difficulty could be passing the initial challenge but even if some attempts fail, others will probably succeed and this doesn't seem to be the major issue.

Kind regards,
Jaime

Different prop firm business models and constraints exist. The algorithm designer should tailor it to the needs of the organization. Thus it's likely more of a private matter, which would explain why it's rarely discussed here.