Proprietary trading firm Instant Funding has joined a growing list of retail platforms in halting the onboarding of new US clients. This decision comes in response to a recent move by their partner broker, ThinkMarkets, to cease providing services to prop firms’ clients in the United States. The request to do so reportedly originated from Instant Funding’s current trading platform provider, catching many in the industry by surprise and prompting firms to seek alternative arrangements.

Despite the abrupt change, Instant Funding is reassuring its clients that it has been preparing for such a scenario and has devised a plan to minimize disruption to their trading activities. The firm’s strategy includes introducing DXtrade as an alternative trading platform for US traders, with a potential transition period of up to three weeks. Active US traders will retain their accounts, with Instant Funding providing regular updates on the transition process.

To mitigate any inconvenience caused by the transition, Instant Funding will offer active US traders a free $10,000 One-Phase Challenge and a 30% discount code for when they switch to DXtrade. Additionally, the firm plans to unveil promotions for its entire community following the DXtrade integration, with further details to be disclosed in March.

In light of these developments, Instant Funding is advising all active account holders to close their positions before the end of the trading session on February 23. Accounts with open trades at market close will have their positions automatically closed.

Interestingly, Matt Lark, CEO of Lark Funding, a fellow prop firm, recently expressed confidence in their relationship with ThinkMarkets and received reassurances about their operations. However, the broader impact of MetaQuotes’ stricter approach on other firms relying on ThinkMarkets, such as AquaFunded, Bespoke, Forex Capital Funds, Goat Funded Trader, Ment Funding, My Flash Funding, My Funded FX, Skilled Funded Traders, Swift Funding, The Funded Trader, and Traddoo, remains to be seen.

The reaction within the trading community has been a mix of concern and confusion. Discussions on various platforms reflect a sense of urgency to adapt to these changes, with compliance timelines varying according to different sources. Some speculate that brokers in violation of jurisdictional regulations must rectify their status by as late as June 30.