Tradesera currently offers two simulated futures competition formats:
All trading is simulated. No live trades are executed, no customer funds are placed into financial markets, and no competition creates a live funded trading account.
MNQ Scale Cup is a gradual scaling competition designed to reward consistency and controlled growth.
Traders begin with reduced size and earn additional exposure through performance.
The competition uses:
Starting simulated balance:
Starting size:
Maximum size:
Only one exposure mode may be active at a time.
Allowed:
Not allowed:
Maximum accounts per trader:
Copy trading:
Unlocks are based on cumulative reviewed end-of-day realized profit.
Starting size:
Unlock schedule:
| Reviewed realized profit | Max size |
|---|---|
| Start | 3 MNQ |
| $400+ | 4 MNQ |
| $500+ | 5 MNQ |
| $600+ | 6 MNQ |
| $700+ | 7 MNQ |
| $800+ | 8 MNQ |
| $900+ | 9 MNQ |
| $1,000+ | 10 MNQ or 1 NQ |
Rules:
At full unlock, a trader may choose:
Requirements:
Switching occurs through Rithmic product limits.
Once switched, the selected mode remains active for the rest of the trading day.
Type:
Starting drawdown:
Scaling:
Maximum drawdown:
Examples:
| Size | Drawdown |
|---|---|
| 3 MNQ | $750 |
| 4 MNQ | $1,000 |
| 5 MNQ | $1,250 |
| 6 MNQ | $1,500 |
| 7 MNQ | $1,750 |
| 8 MNQ | $2,000 |
| 9 MNQ | $2,250 |
| 10 MNQ / 1 NQ | $2,500 |
MNQ Scale Cup has no trailing drawdown, no daily loss limit, and no consistency rule.
Positions may not be held through the daily maintenance break.
Required:
Market reopens:
Profit Lock is an early profit protection and payout review mechanism.
Eligibility:
Qualifying day:
Process:
Profit Lock is:
Final settlement still applies.
Eligible entry revenue:
Operations reserve:
Competition Payout Pool:
Pool allocation:
Example:
| Step | Math | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Eligible entry revenue | 100 accounts x $150 | $15,000 |
| Operations reserve | $15,000 x 20% | $3,000 |
| Competition Payout Pool | $15,000 - $3,000 | $12,000 |
| Trader payout side | $12,000 x 90% | $10,800 |
| Tradesera pool share | $12,000 x 10% | $1,200 |
Expected payout:
approved simulated profit x 90% = expected payout
Examples:
| Approved profit | Math | Expected payout |
|---|---|---|
| $500 | $500 x 90% | $450 |
| $1,000 | $1,000 x 90% | $900 |
| $2,500 | $2,500 x 90% | $2,250 |
The system monitors projected payout exposure.
Formula:
approved expected payouts + live positive expected payouts = projected payout exposure
When exposure reaches the protection threshold, the competition may enter closing mode.
Closing mode may include:
Purpose:
Closing mode helps prevent payout obligations from exceeding pool capacity.
If the pool exceeds expected payouts, the remaining pool is distributed among approved winners based on performance share.
If expected payouts exceed the pool, all approved payouts are proportionally adjusted.
Formula:
available pool / expected payout total = pool coverage
Example:
If pool coverage is 96%, all approved payouts are multiplied by 96%.
If no trader qualifies, no payouts occur.
The remaining trader payout pool rolls into the next scheduled MNQ Scale Cup.
NQ Showdown is a weekly competition designed for traders who want a shorter, direct competition format.
Unlike MNQ Scale Cup, NQ Showdown has:
Starting balance:
Maximum exposure:
Modes:
Only one mode may be active at a time.
Default mode:
Maximum:
MNQ and NQ rankings are completely separate.
Weekly cycle:
Settlement begins after competition close.
Tradesera may delay, cancel, or reschedule a window if participation requirements are not met.
Static drawdown:
Minimum balance:
NQ Showdown has no trailing drawdown, no daily loss limit, and no consistency rule.
Profit Lock is not available for NQ Showdown.
All payout review occurs after competition close.
Eligible entry revenue:
Operations reserve:
Competition pool:
Winner allocation:
Example:
| Step | Math | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Eligible entry revenue | 20 entries x $200 | $4,000 |
| Operations reserve | $4,000 x 20% | $800 |
| Competition pool | $4,000 - $800 | $3,200 |
| Winner pool | $3,200 x 90% | $2,880 |
| Tradesera share | $3,200 x 10% | $320 |
To qualify, a trader must:
Top 20% is rounded up.
Example:
| Paid entries | Math | Maximum paid group |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | 19 x 20% = 3.8, rounded up | 4 traders |
Performance share:
trader net profit / total qualifying net profit = performance share
Payout:
performance share x winner pool = estimated payout
Example:
Winner pool:
Qualifying profits:
| Trader | Net profit |
|---|---|
| Trader A | $3,000 |
| Trader B | $1,500 |
| Trader C | $1,000 |
| Trader D | $500 |
| Total | $6,000 |
Trader A:
$3,000 / $6,000 = 50%
50% x $2,880 = $1,440
Top 20% defines the maximum paid group.
Not all spots must be filled.
Example:
Those 2 traders split the winner pool by performance share.
If no trader qualifies, no payouts occur.
The remaining winner pool may roll into the next NQ Showdown according to product rules.
| Feature | MNQ Scale Cup | NQ Showdown |
|---|---|---|
| Duration | Ongoing | Weekly |
| Starting size | 3 MNQ | 1 NQ equivalent |
| Scaling | Yes | No |
| Profit Lock | Yes | No |
| Drawdown | Size-adjusted static drawdown | Fixed $2,000 static drawdown |
| Qualification | Profit Lock eligibility + final settlement | Top 20% + $500 minimum |
| Payout model | Pool-backed expected payout with settlement adjustments | Dynamic performance pool |
| Account limit | 2 | 1 |
| Copy trading | Allowed between own eligible accounts | Allowed only with compatible exposure mode |
| Settlement | Profit Lock + final settlement | Weekly settlement |