Ascent Futures

Single-phase evaluation with a fixed dollar profit target: The Ascent challenge requires reaching a $1,500 profit target within a 30-day window. Unlike percentage-based challenges, the target is fixed in dollar terms and represents 6% of the $25,000 account size. All positions must be closed before the profit target is confirmed as reached.
Time limit of 30 days: Unlike many other prop firms that offer unlimited evaluation periods, the Ascent challenge has a hard 30-day deadline. If the $1,500 profit target is not reached within the 30-day window while respecting all drawdown rules, the evaluation expires and a reset fee of $47.04 applies to restart.
Minimum trading days of 2: At least 2 valid trading days are required to pass the Ascent challenge. A day counts as valid only if the trader generates a net profit of at least $200 on that day. Days where total net profit falls below $200 — regardless of how many trades were placed — do not count toward the minimum.
End-of-Day (EOD) drawdown of $1,000: The Ascent uses an EOD drawdown model. The $1,000 maximum loss limit is calculated only once per day, at the close of the trading session, based on the highest end-of-day closing balance achieved so far. Intraday spikes in equity — including unrealized profits from open positions — do not move the drawdown floor upward. However, live equity (including open positions) must never fall below the current minimum balance at any point during the session, even intraday.
How the EOD floor moves: The current minimum balance is always the highest end-of-day closing balance achieved so far, minus $1,000. If the account closes Day 1 at $25,500, the new minimum balance becomes $24,500. If Day 2 closes flat at $25,500, the floor remains at $24,500. If Day 3 closes at $26,000, the floor rises to $25,000 and stays there permanently until a higher closing balance is reached.
Maximum contracts: Traders may hold a maximum of 1 Mini contract and 10 Micro contracts simultaneously on a $25,000 account. Mixing Minis and Micros is allowed provided the total equivalent exposure does not exceed the maximum limit. Attempting to exceed the contract cap will have the order rejected.
No activation fee: There is no activation fee to access the funded account after passing the Ascent challenge. Once the challenge is passed and KYC is verified, the funded account is activated at no additional cost.
Profit split: 90% to the trader across all funded account activity.
Payout structure: To be eligible for a payout, traders must complete at least 5 profitable trading days in the funded account per payout cycle, where each qualifying day generates a net profit of at least $200. Days with less than $200 net profit do not count. After each payout, the 5-day counter resets and must be completed again before the next withdrawal.
Consistency rule (funded only): No single trading day may account for more than 35% of total profits accumulated in the current payout cycle. Exceeding this threshold does not breach the account but blocks payout requests until further trading dilutes the ratio below 35%. This rule does not apply during the challenge phase.
Payout buffer and cap: A required buffer of $1,100 must remain in the account after any withdrawal. The maximum payout per cycle is $1,500. The minimum payout per request is $250. To request the full $1,500 maximum payout, total profits in the cycle must reach at least $2,600 ($1,500 cap + $1,100 buffer).
Platform: BlackArrow. All challenge and funded account trading is conducted exclusively through the BlackArrow platform on CME futures markets.
EOD model is forgiving intraday but unforgiving at session end: The Ascent's biggest advantage is that intraday pullbacks and unrealized losses from open positions that recover before session close do not move the floor. A trader can experience a $900 intraday drawdown and recover to finish positive — as long as live equity never touches the current minimum balance, the challenge continues. However, every profitable session permanently raises the floor, progressively tightening available risk as the challenge advances.
30-day window creates time pressure for conservative traders: Swing traders and lower-frequency strategies may find 30 days insufficient to generate 2 qualifying trading days ($200+ profit each) while accumulating $1,500 in profits within the contract limits. Strategies that hold positions for extended periods and take fewer but larger positions are most aligned with the Ascent's EOD mechanics.
Contract limit creates a ceiling on daily earnings: With a maximum of 1 Mini contract on a $25,000 account, daily profit potential is directly tied to market move size and the number of viable setups. Traders who are accustomed to scaling into positions must respect the hard contract cap at all times, as violations result in order rejection.
35% consistency rule in funded can delay payouts significantly: A single strong day that generates $700 out of $1,500 total profit (46.7%) blocks all payout requests until additional trading brings the ratio to $700/$2,000 or below (35%). At the $25,000 level with a $1,500 max payout cap, managing single-day performance relative to cumulative profits is a critical funded-stage skill.