Key terms, from the firm’s own documents

• Contracting entity: Hantec Trader Limited, Mauritius company number C191400, registered at Suite 201, The Catalyst, Silicon Avenue, 40 Cybercity, Ebene — stated in clause 1 of the terms and conditions.
• Challenge fee: $39 for a $2,000 Express account, rising to $999 for $200,000, per the Express Challenge page.
• Account sizes: $1,000 to $200,000, with free scaling to $200,000 after a pass.
• Profit target: 10% on Express (one step); 10% then 5% on Enhanced; 8% then 4% on EnhancedX.
• Max daily loss: 5% on Express and Enhanced, 4% on EnhancedX, 3% on Instant Funding, 2% on Instant24 — measured against the previous end-of-day balance or equity, whichever is higher, at 00:00 server time.
• Max total loss: 6% on Express, trailing the closed balance until the account is 6% up, then locked at the starting balance; 10% static on Enhanced; 8% static on EnhancedX.
• Profit split: 80% as standard, “increased to 95% with an add-on purchase” — the firm’s own knowledge-base article, updated 12 August 2026.
• Payouts: first reward requestable 14 days after the first trade, then every 14 days, or 7 days with a paid add-on; $20 minimum request.

The distinction that matters: a broker launching a prop product

The Industry Spread has already reported that FTMO is unusual because it went the other way and bought a regulated broker outright — the subject of our FTMO review. Hantec Trader is the reverse case, and the more common one: an established broker group launching a prop product alongside its regulated business, as IC Markets did when it stepped into prop trading with ICFunded.

That structure sounds reassuring and is sold that way. Every page carries the strapline “Powered by Hantec Markets Mauritius,” and the homepage promises “tight spreads and real market like conditions powered by Hantec Markets Mauritius.” Hantec Markets Limited is a real, long-established broker — Companies House number 06819047, incorporated 13 February 2009, and listed on the FCA’s Financial Services Register under firm reference number 502635.

None of that reaches the funded trader. The site’s own legal footer settles it in a single line: “Hantec Trader does not carry out any regulated activities and is not regulated by the FCA. Hantec Trader Limited (MU) and Hantec Markets Limited are two entirely separate entities.” The same footer spells out the consequence: “you will not have the benefit of regulatory protections available to customers of authorised firms, such as access to the financial ombudsman services or financial compensation schemes.” A retail client of the UK broker sits behind FSCS cover and the Financial Ombudsman Service. A Hantec Trader customer does not, and the firm says so.

One further layer is worth naming. Website support services are provided by HM Provider Limited, a UK company: number 14429485, incorporated 19 October 2022, at 12 Kinghorn Street, London EC1A 7HT, classified under SIC code 82990 — “other business support service activities not elsewhere classified.” A London address in the chain is not a London licence.

Execution is simulated, and the launch coverage said otherwise

When Hantec Trader launched, Finance Magnates reported on 23 January 2024 that the product offered “live trading on real liquidity without the need for a deposit”, describing a “live account with a balance of up to $200,000.” Andrew Speakman, then sales director at Hantec Trader, said the launch “encompasses our goal of extending financial freedom and empowerment to a global audience by allowing a low risk, low-cost way for individuals to participate in the global financial markets.”

The current contract contradicts the “live” framing. Clause 3.1 states that accounts “are not being executed in the real market, and the trade execution is simulating the market conditions to the best possible extent,” hosted on Hantec Markets Limited’s trading servers. Clause 3.2 goes further: “The Company shall never transmit an order to the trading venue on the Customer’s behalf and the funds are virtual.” The footer repeats it — Hantec Trader “does not provide traders with direct access to Company capital.”

The firm’s current marketing is accurate: the homepage headline reads “trade in a simulated environment without risking your own capital.” The problem is the residue. Third-party review sites still describe Hantec Trader as offering “real market execution via Hantec Markets,” a claim the terms flatly contradict. If you are buying on the strength of live fills, you are buying something the contract does not sell.

Payouts: what is published and what is not

Hantec Trader publishes its payout mechanics clearly, which is more than much of the cluster manages. The first reward can be requested 14 days after the first trade, the standard cycle is 14 days, a paid add-on cuts it to seven, and the minimum request is $20. Express, Enhanced and EnhancedX all advertise “first payout on demand”; the Instant programs do not.

What the firm does not publish is audited payout data. The only aggregate figure on the public record is a milestone: Finance Magnates reported in April 2025 that the firm had paid $1m in rewards to clients since it began operating at the turn of 2023 and 2024. Bashaar Gokal, director of operations, said the firm built its instant funding line “to remove unnecessary barriers and accelerate access to opportunity.” That is a milestone, not an audit: there is no breakdown of approval rates, denial rates, or trader numbers. Third-party review aggregates could not be verified either — Trustpilot and PropFirmMatch both block automated retrieval, so any star rating quoted for this firm should be treated as unverified.

One published term deserves correcting. Several review sites state that the Hantec Trader challenge fee is refunded with the first payout. It is not. Clause 6.4 grants a refund “only within 14 days of the purchase of an order, provided that no trading has occurred on the Simulated Trading Account.” Once you place a trade, the fee is gone. FTMO, by contrast, publishes a “100% refund of your initial fee with your first reward withdrawal” — a real difference in the cost of a pass.

The rules that actually end accounts

The commercial terms are on the marketing pages; the enforcement terms are in the contract, and they are the harsher document.

Scalping is defined numerically. The terms deem scalping to occur “where the aggregate net profits derived from trades held for less than 3 minutes represents thirty percent (30%) or more of the total net profits generated on the account during the relevant assessment period.” Breach it and the firm may adjust, reduce or remove profits, restrict the account or terminate it. The clause adds that “Hantec Trader’s determination of whether trading activity constitutes Scalping shall be final and binding.”

Enforcement runs without evidence. Clause 7.3 permits proportionate enforcement action “without prior notice, explanation, or evidence,” including withholding or clawing back “payouts (whether pending or previously approved).” It then reverses the burden: “The Customer bears the responsibility of demonstrating that their trading activity was legitimate, compliant, and independent.” This clause survives a pass and applies after a payout has been approved.

The Risk Management Group is a soft ban. Traders flagged under clause 8 are placed in an RMG where leverage is cut to 1:30 on FX, 1:5 on indices and commodities, 1:3 on metals and 1:1 on crypto — from a headline 1:50. Exit requires “three (3) payouts on a single Hantec Trader account” or a discretionary decision that risk concerns have been resolved, and placement “may apply retroactively.”

Copy trading and capital aggregation. Copying another person’s entries is prohibited outright. Running the same or a substantially similar strategy across your own accounts is permitted only while aggregate allocated or notional capital stays at or below $300,000 — which caps the scaling ladder at a level well below what stacking $200,000 accounts would suggest.

Consistency is priced. EnhancedX imposes a 35% consistency score, calculated as best trading day’s profit divided by total profit. The programme page notes it “can be removed from Phase 1 and Phase 2 with the ‘Remove Consistency From Challenge’ add on.” Instant24 carries a 15% trade-consistency requirement and a 24-hour clock from the first trade. The Instant programs also bar news trading and weekend holding entirely, and are unavailable to residents of the UK, Mauritius, Hong Kong and Singapore — including, notably, the jurisdiction the company is incorporated in.

How it compares with the other broker-launched prop firms

	Hantec Trader	ThinkCapital	FTMO
Contracting entity	Hantec Trader Limited (Mauritius, C191400)	ThinkCapital (regulator not named on site)	FTMO s.r.o. (Czech Republic)
Broker relationship	Group affiliate; terms state the two are “entirely separate entities”	“Backed by ThinkMarkets”	Owns OANDA, a regulated broker
Execution	Simulated; no order sent to venue	Simulated; “does not act as a broker”	Simulated
Two-step targets	10% + 5% (Enhanced)	9% + 5% (Dual Step)	10% + 5%
Max daily loss	5%	4%	5%
Max total loss	10% static	7% challenge / 8% funded	10% static
Profit split	80% base, 95% with add-on	Up to 90%	Up to 90%
Largest account	$200,000	$600,000	$200,000
Fee refund	14 days only, and only if no trade placed	Not published	100% with first withdrawal
Payout cycle	14 days (7 with add-on)	14 days (7 with add-on)	On request

Note the pattern for anyone shopping on regulatory reassurance: ThinkCapital’s disclaimer uses almost identical wording to Hantec Trader’s — “does not act as a broker and does not accept any deposits” — and names no regulator at all. That is the standard carve-out letting a prop product sit outside the licence its parent holds, covered from the other side in our ThinkCapital review and in our analysis of offshore FX licensing regimes.

Regulatory posture

Hantec Trader Limited holds a Mauritius company registration, C191400. A company number is not a licence. The terms claim no Financial Services Commission authorisation for the prop entity, stating plainly that it “does not conduct any regulated activities, does not act as a broker, and does not accept deposits, consequently, it is not required to be authorized by the regulatory authority.” That is accurate, and more candid than most of the cluster manages. It also means “Powered by Hantec Markets Mauritius” should be read as a statement about pricing feeds and servers, not about who owes you money. For the broker itself, our Hantec Markets review covers the regulated retail business separately.

FAQ

Is Hantec Trader regulated? No. The terms state that Hantec Trader Limited does not conduct regulated activities and is not regulated by the FCA. The FCA-authorised entity in the group, Hantec Markets Limited (FRN 502635), is described in the same document as an entirely separate company. Funded traders get no ombudsman access and no compensation-scheme cover.

Are Hantec Trader accounts live or simulated? Simulated. Clause 3.1 says trades are “not being executed in the real market,” and clause 3.2 says the company “shall never transmit an order to the trading venue.” Launch coverage in January 2024 described live execution on real liquidity; the current contract does not support that description.

What is the real profit split? 80%. The knowledge base and the programme FAQs both state that the standard reward split is 80% and that reaching 95% requires buying an add-on. The 95% figure in the site’s hero banner is the ceiling, not the default.

Is the challenge fee refunded after the first payout? No, despite claims to that effect on third-party review sites. Clause 6.4 allows a refund only within 14 days of purchase and only if no trading has taken place on the account.

What is the drawdown mechanic on the Express challenge? The 6% maximum total loss trails your closed balance until the account is 6% in profit, at which point it stops trailing and locks at the starting balance. The 5% daily limit is measured from the previous end-of-day balance or equity, whichever is higher, reset at 00:00 server time. US residents are excluded from the product entirely.

This review is independent editorial analysis and is not financial, investment, or trading advice, and is not an endorsement or solicitation. The Industry Spread has no affiliate or referral relationship with the firms covered. Proprietary trading challenges carry a fee that is generally non-refundable, most participants do not reach a funded account, and funded capital is the firm’s capital, not the trader’s. Terms change frequently — always verify current rules directly with the firm before paying any fee.