Key terms at a glance

• Assessment fees: from $15 (a $500 Instant Funded account) to $19,997 (a $200,000 Empire account); the two-stage Foundation model starts at $65 for $5,000 (programme page).
• Account sizes: $500 to $200,000 of starting equity, with payout matrices listing maximum equity of $1 million to $50 million after scaling.
• Profit split: 50% on every scaling model, rising to 90% at the top level or under the “90% Lock Rule”; Foundation pays 65%, 70%, 85% and then 90% (FAQ).
• Profit targets: 6% (Traditional, Xtreme), 7% (Premier) and 10% (Empire) per level; Foundation asks for 10%, then 5%, then 10% at each funded level.
• Maximum drawdown: static, from 3% (Xtreme) to 10% (Empire), measured from each level’s opening balance.
• Daily loss limit: none, on any model.
• Payout frequency: one payout per calendar month under clause 12.17 of the terms and conditions, plus a payout at each scaling target; weekly only at the top level or under the Lock Rule.
• Minimum trading days: none on the scaling models; Foundation requires 3 profitable days per stage.

All figures are from the firm’s own pages, checked on 15 September 2026.

What the AFSL banner actually refers to

The first line on the prop.theconcepttrader.com homepage reads “AUSTRALIAN AFSL LICENSED · NO DAILY DRAWDOWN · UP TO 90% PROFIT SPLIT”. The small print is more precise. The footer describes The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd (ACN 652 938 399) as “a Corporate Authorised Representative of Vested Equities Pty Ltd”, the holder of Australian Financial Services Licence 478987. The Concept Trading does not hold a licence of its own. It borrows one.

ASIC’s own data shows how narrow that borrowing is. In the September 2026 extract of the AFS Authorised Representative dataset, The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd appears as representative 001317633, current since 29 September 2025, based in Maroochydore, Queensland. The only authorisation flag set against it is “Provide financial product advice”. Every dealing flag is zero. The dataset does record dealing authority when a licensee grants it: Harbour City Corporate Pty Ltd, another corporate representative on the same licence, is flagged for advice and for dealing. An individual, David Jason Long, is also listed, appointed by The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd itself, again for advice only.

That matters because the firm’s Financial Services Guide says more. Dated 20 February 2024, it tells clients the firm is authorised under AFSL 478987 to give advice and to “deal in the following classes of financial products”, including derivatives. The licence held by Vested Equities does cover both, according to ASIC’s licensee dataset. The current appointment of The Concept Trading, as ASIC records it, covers advice. The same FSG also says the firm is paid from a “40% profit share arrangement”, while every scaling model on the site now keeps 50%. It reads like a document nobody has updated.

In practice the licence link covers what the footer calls “general information and education only”: courses, newsletters, market commentary. Whether selling a prop evaluation is a financial service at all is a question ASIC has not ruled on for this firm. Our explainer on where the prop-firm regulatory perimeter bites covers that ground, and our Fintokei review looks at a similar split between a prop brand and an offshore broker.

Two licensees and an 11-month gap

The register also shows a history the homepage does not mention. The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd was first appointed on 13 December 2021 under AFSL 323182, held by JB Markets Pty Ltd. That appointment ended on 2 January 2024. A second appointment, under Vested Equities, ran from 20 February 2024 to 31 October 2024. ASIC’s data then shows no current appointment until the present one began on 29 September 2025.

JB Markets did not last. ASIC suspended its licence on 8 November 2023 and then cancelled it. In the words of ASIC media release 24-081MR: “ASIC has cancelled the Australian Financial Services (AFS) licence of JB Markets Pty Ltd (JB Markets) effective from 12 April 2024, for failing to: comply with the financial requirements of its AFS licence; and have adequate resources”. ASIC later noted that the Administrative Review Tribunal dismissed JB Markets’ appeal on 13 October 2025. Nothing in ASIC’s releases implicates The Concept Trading, whose appointment ended after the suspension. But it means the “AFSL licensed” line has sat on three different arrangements in under four years, with a gap in the middle.

ABN Lookup confirms the underlying company: ABN 78 652 938 399, active since 18 August 2021, with “The Concept Trading” registered as its business name the same day.

Who holds the account: a Saint Lucia broker with the same name

The firm is candid about who runs the trading accounts. Its FAQ says: “No, The Concept Trading is not the broker, it is a prop trading firm. The Concept Limited is the broker we use.” The terms of The Concept Limited give its registered number as 2025-00084 and its address as Rodney Bay, Gros-Islet, Saint Lucia. They describe it as providing “an online platform for foreign exchange trading”. Its terms, complaints procedure and AML policy all quote that registration number. None cites a financial services licence. Saint Lucia is one of the jurisdictions covered in our piece on offshore FX licensing.

The prop terms spell out the structure. Clause 12.2: “A Prop account is a sub account of The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd account with its preferred broker”. Clause 12.3: “The Prop account may operate on a server that is live, demo or another type.” Clause 12.8: “You accept that any funds in the Prop account are owned by the Company”. The FAQ narrows it down: Intern accounts run on a demo server, and Level 1 and above on a live server.

On Trustpilot the firm goes further, telling one reviewer in August 2026 that “because you are trading real funds in the live market, not some made up simulation, we require you to become an employee via completing the KYC and Client Service Agreement”. Its public replies also describe the broker inconsistently. In January 2025 it said “We outsource our execution to keep an arms length”. In August 2025 it said “Our broker is relatively new”. We could not verify whether funded trades at a broker bearing the firm’s own brand reach an external liquidity provider. The FSG adds that the firm “may also earn a rebate from our executing brokers for volume traded”.

The platform has changed repeatedly. Reviews mention a Blueberry platform in late 2024, DXTrade in January 2025 and a move to MetaTrader 5 in March 2025. Checkout today offers “Platform 5” or TradeLocker. The trader dashboard at my.theconcepttrading.com runs on YourPropFirm, a third-party prop-firm software vendor. Checkout is a WooCommerce store on the firm’s own site. We found no sign that the brand is a white-label of another prop firm.

Payouts: what is published and what could not be verified

The FAQ sets out the payout mechanics. Once on Level 1 or above, a trader is paid a profit share each time they hit the scaling target. Outside scaling events they can withdraw profit once a month. Weekly withdrawals apply only at the top level of a model or under the 90% Lock Rule. Invoices must be lodged “within 30 days of reaching the scaling target or forfeit the profit share”. Payment options are bank transfer, crypto, Revolut and PayPal.

The homepage sells something faster: “eligible payout requests can be made every 7 days”. The binding document says otherwise. Clause 12.17 reads “Only 1 payout per calendar month is allowed.” Clause 10.2 adds that “All advertising material and all prior representations are hereby superseded by these Terms and Conditions”. The payout is also capped. Clause 12.14 limits the profit share “to the percentage of the profit target”, and the FAQ gives a worked Foundation example: “You then get 65% of the 10% (capped).”

Independent evidence is mostly Trustpilot. On 15 September 2026 the Trustpilot page showed 471 reviews and a 4.7 score, with reviews still arriving in late August 2026. One reviewer, Chris, wrote on 11 August 2026: “They are transparent and I got my payout inside of 24hrs.” The firm’s replies deserve a look too. It asked one four-star reviewer: “Why only 4 stars though? What can we do to get the 5th star from you?”

What we could not verify: the homepage claim of “12,900+ funded traders”; any aggregate or audited payout figure, which we did not find on the homepage, FAQ, rules or terms; and the awards shown on the competition page, including “Best Prop Trading Firm Global 2025”, which name no issuer. We also found no dated, first-hand payout threads on Reddit to set against the Trustpilot record.

The rules that end accounts

With no daily limit, the static maximum drawdown is the main tripwire. It ranges from 3% to 10% of the level’s opening balance, and a breach closes the account (clause 12.11). The 3% Xtreme model draws the sharpest criticism. “To be honest 3% is not a reasonable drawdown limit,” one reviewer wrote in August 2025. The firm replied that he had chosen that model over others with wider limits.

• Inactivity: the terms terminate an account after 42 days without trading (clause 12.21), but the homepage says accounts need “at least one active trade every 30 days”. Trade inside the shorter window.
• Discretionary conduct rules: clause 12.24 bans opposing positions across accounts, account arbitrage and “Trading behaviour that is exploitative, manipulative, or not commercially replicable in real market environments”. Clause 12.10 lets the firm terminate any account “at its absolute discretion without notice”.
• Restart cost: after termination, new programmes start again at Intern level (clause 12.22).
• Account caps: 3 Empire, 3 Xtreme, 5 Premier, 10 Traditional and 10 Foundation accounts. A trader who reaches the cap on one model cannot hold accounts in another.
• Execution costs: “Pro Spreads” carry a $6 round-turn commission. Trustpilot complaints include a 48-pip GBP/JPY spread that took out a stop overnight, and Nasdaq spreads described as “untradable”.

The strategy rules are loose by industry standards. The rules page allows EAs, HFT, copiers, overnight and weekend holding. Prizes in the $9,000 monthly trading competition are “issued as TCT platform coupons. Non-withdrawable.”

How it compares on a $100,000 account

Sources: The Concept Trading programme page; FTMO trading objectives; The5ers High Stakes page; all checked 15 September 2026.

The trade-off is plain. The Concept Trading drops the daily limit that catches many traders at FTMO and The5ers. In return, its Empire $100,000 account costs $9,997 and pays 50% of profit until the trader climbs the ladder or locks in 90%, where The5ers advertises an 80%–100% split for funded High Stakes traders. Our survey of the price of a $100K account across 23 firms puts that fee in context. For another Australian-linked firm backed by a broker, see our Blueberry Funded review. FTMO is the benchmark for a prop firm that owns a regulated broker.

Regulatory posture

Operator: The Concept AU/NZ Pty Ltd (ACN 652 938 399), Queensland, is a corporate authorised representative of Vested Equities Pty Ltd (AFSL 478987), and ASIC records that authorisation as advice only. Broker: The Concept Limited, Saint Lucia registration 2025-00084, with no licence cited in its documents. Accounts: Intern levels are demo. Funded levels are described as live, but the terms reserve “live, demo or another type”. Complaints: the FSG points clients to AFCA through Vested Equities’ membership (number 36765). Whether AFCA would accept a dispute over a prop account held at a Saint Lucia broker is untested. The prop terms name no specific governing law, only “the jurisdiction in which the company operates”.

FAQ

Is The Concept Trading regulated by ASIC?

Not directly. Its operating company is a corporate authorised representative of Vested Equities Pty Ltd, which holds AFSL 478987. ASIC’s authorised-representative data flags that appointment for financial product advice only, not dealing. The prop accounts are held at The Concept Limited, a Saint Lucia company whose published documents cite a registration number rather than a financial services licence.

Is the funded account live or demo?

The FAQ says Intern accounts use a demo server and Level 1 and above use a live server, and the firm tells reviewers funded traders use “real funds in the live market”. The terms are looser: clause 12.3 says a prop account “may operate on a server that is live, demo or another type”, and clause 12.8 says the funds belong to the company.

How often does The Concept Trading pay out?

Funded traders are paid at each scaling target and may otherwise withdraw once a calendar month, which is the limit in clause 12.17 of the terms. Weekly payouts apply only at a model’s top level or under the 90% Lock Rule. Invoices must be lodged within 30 days of hitting a target, or the profit share is forfeited.

What is the 90% Lock Rule?

After hitting a level’s target and taking that level’s normal payout, a trader can ask to freeze the account at that level. From then on they receive 90% of profits with no further target and weekly payouts, but the account can never scale higher. It is not available on the Foundation model or at Intern level.

Who is The Concept Limited?

It is the broker The Concept Trading names in its FAQ, registered in Saint Lucia under number 2025-00084 at Rodney Bay, Gros-Islet. It shares the brand and runs theconcepttrader.com, offering MetaTrader 5 and TradeLocker. Its terms describe an online foreign exchange trading platform and are not addressed to US residents.

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.