Matthew

💸 Just a Topstep ambassador documenting my journey 🧠 🛡️ Building 🧱 by 🧱 ALL GLORY TO GOD 📈

[Jordan @JVTradingg]

WHAT THE FUCK!

The amount of “affiliates” push @VestExchange is insane.

Most are net negative on it and begging their supporters to use their code so they can make up the money they’ve lost 🤯🤣

Should I give it a try and document it all? With account numbers and screenshots? 🤔

[Minx @iamJMinx]

Everyone's fighting today, so let me say what nobody wants to hear.
Spending $90K to make $120K is not a $120K win. It's $30K profit on $90K of risk. But all you see is the payout screenshot.

That's the problem. Showing only the payout sells FOMO. It makes newer traders think the goal is to buy accounts until one hits. That's not trading. That's a slot machine with a chart on it. I tell my community this all the time.

And account numbers don't tell you the spend either. 400 accounts at $10 each is $4,000. 400 accounts at $1000 each is $400,000. Same account number, completely different story. The only thing that matters is what someone spent versus what they got paid. It's all about ROI.

And you're not playing the same ball game. Someone risking $90K to make $120K might have far more capital behind them than you. I know people who've made $1 million in a day and lost $1 million in a day. Risk tolerance is different for every single person. Copying someone's size without their bankroll is how accounts and savings disappear.
Transparency or not —you don’t have the same risk tolerance, experience, or goals.

Then there's the account editing. Fair point, but aim it at the trader, not the prop firm. There are valid reasons to rename accounts, like grouping them by size or drawdown to keep track of everything. It's their dashboard. The firm gives flexibility. What someone does with that flexibility is on them.

Same with payout wallets. People can show other people's wallets. I know, shocker?! Approved affiliate money sits in those wallets too. A screenshot proves nothing about whether someone can actually trade.

Now the other side. Calling out transparency is fair, but it has to go both ways. Not everyone in this space trades, and that's fine. Comparisons, reviews and education all bring value. There are many who provide nothing aside from shilling a code. But if you're judging someone's trading results, it helps to have been in the seat yourself. It's easy to read a screenshot. It's a lot harder to sit through the drawdowns behind it.

And affiliates themselves aren't the problem. Firms need them. Google ads and celebrity posts cost a fortune and don't reach traders. That's money that would never make it back to the trading community, and less money left in the firm to pay traders out. Traders reach traders. That's why affiliate programs exist.

Some of you forget the money is a cycle. Even the big gamblers burning through accounts are putting money back into the firms, and that money helps fund the payouts for consistent traders. You can bash affiliates all day, but without them 99% of you wouldn't even know what a prop firm is.

The line isn't trader vs affiliate. It's value vs noise.

New traders, I get the FOMO. That's exactly why you need to understand all of this. I've been in this space since 2019 and I've seen it all. Faked IRS and broker statements. Edited "live" login videos that got exposed because someone went through them frame by frame. AI-generated login videos. The sooner you accept that someone else's numbers will never replicate yours, the better off you'll be. In fact, mute them, you’ll thank me later.

So stop with the bs and stop glazing people over screenshots. Be careful who you trust and who you surround yourself with. Find someone who actually teaches and learn it properly. Otherwise you'll be out the door in a few months.

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@ironman_20x @futurescal Yes, if you use a third party copy trader, same as Tradovate

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@Lucki_L24 @mygreenknight Are you trolling? The "account number" doesnt mean anything if it can just be edited so nobody knows if it is indeed the actual account number. Nothing wrong with spending more to make more but spending 200k for example acting like you only spent 20k is beyond shady.

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@Lucki_L24 @mygreenknight Did you look at the picture attached? Accounts with "A" image have been renamed. No reason to rename the account to "Account x" unless you're trying to deceive your audience

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

Topstepx has grown on me massively over the past year and a half. I’ve now fully migrated from desktop platforms I paid $1,000+ for lifetime licenses on, and I have zero reason to go back.

For a web-based platform, TopstepX is seriously impressive. Comparing it to Tradovate at this point almost feels unfair, especially with how far it’s come and the suite of trader-focused risk management tools.

Don't even get me started on the cool stuff thats possible with the API 🫣

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@dontbsallti These shills are getting desperate 😭

[Market Mommy @dontbsallti]

Bro really said “Bet on your self” just so u spend 3500 and use his code so he can make 20% commission 😭

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@NickDoesFutures @VestExchange Why I DONT run vest / perps

✅️ Unregulated assets
✅️ Based out of Panama
✅️ Constant inconsistencies
✅️ Blatantly manipulating price
✅️ Relies on affiliate shills

I could go on but tdlr a rug in the making

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

I know they’re different. My point is that I think that difference is to the trader’s detriment, especially when affiliate shills push these products onto people who haven’t a clue on how they differ from futures props acting like they're a 1-1 copy when that couldn't be further from the truth.

This is the only prop firm I’ve seen where users reportedly burn through $20K, $50K, even $100K in a single day, rinsing accounts.

Traditional prop firms are already called casinos. So what do we call this?

The prop space gets criticized as the Wild West despite trading regulated assets. But with perps, you’re trading in an environment where the firm itself controls the pricing.

At that point, stop-loss hunting isn’t just a market boogeyman traders blame their losses on. If the firm controls the price, that’s a fundamentally different conflict of interest.

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

Only popular because the curtain hasn't fallen yet

✅️ Unregulated assets
✅️ Based out of Panama
✅️ Constant inconsistencies
✅️ Blatantly manipulating price
✅️ Relies on affiliate shills

I could go on but tdlr a rug in the making

[The Milk Man @MrMilkTrading]

I tried one of these "perps" prop firms, trading XYZ100

$1,000 profit on a trade, $600 of it went to fees. Account equity at $50,400

On regular NQ my equity would be at $50,950

I can say this because I don't suck on the affiliate code tit

Total fucking scam IMO

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

Then explain how Vest actually operates, because the constant back and forth over whether they’re a full A-book firm in contrast to their ToS makes it nearly impossible to understand their business model.

The only people I see glorifying Vest are those shilling to their followers or hoping to secure an affiliate code(like yourself) Meanwhile, traders with nothing to gain are reporting negative experiences.

At some point, you have to stop ignoring the writing on the wall.

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@JD_Futures Yup! The writing is on the wall just for all these furus to claim ignorance once they rug. It's honestly comical

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

If you think you can compare Vest's tickers to regulated CME tickers I want what you're smoking.

Vest payouts getting denied for lack of liquidity stating SIM traders are essentially market makers. This could never happen at futures firms like @Topstep

Anything for the shill 😆

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

Probably how vest brings on new affiliates

Imagine being able to rename accounts to remove or change the account number just to shill a predatory un regulated Panama based perps firm to your following that hasn't even been around for a month

Disgusting tbh 🫣

[Joseph “the minister” goebbels @petethefatlarp]

THIS is how you turn a pledge into a slag (scholar, leader, athlete, gentleman) #rushpike #pikespike #uark #spank #glorytotheidf

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

This! @Topstep doesnt need the standard affiliate packages because their reputation speaks for itself

Unlike Vest who's only relevant because they pay your favorite influencers / shills to promote their garbage to you

[Stoic Trader @StoicTA]

Why almost nobody promotes TopStep?

because they don’t have openly available affiliate program

let that sink in

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@Chkncaseofideas @BossMohitt @VestExchange Yup! Its honestly disgusting. Shilling a prop with no regulations thats based out of Panama... you can't make this stuff up XD

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@Emmonspired @thebrianstonk $700 to trade un regulated assets with a firm based out of Panama 😭 you can't make this stuff up

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

@BrunoHNR12 @Topstep Just trying to get as consistent as you 🐐

[Matthew @FundedFanatic]

First trade this week. +$2,093.

Been focused on building out my workflow utilizing the @Topstep API and becoming more selective with my setups.

This one was too good to pass up. $50K Static now ~75% passed.

Reminder to myself: you don't need to top or bottom tick to make money. Take your piece and move on.