Understanding our loss limits is an important part of managing your risk. Let's start with how a trading day flows in futures markets:
Trading Day Structure
-
Your trading day follows the CME session, which rolls over at 16:37:00 America/Chicago. TT publish the reset times for every exchange here:
At That Moment:
- Your daily P&L resets
- New positions start counting toward the next day's metrics
- Anything you’re still holding carries its open profit or loss into the new session as your start-of-day value, so you begin the day up or down by that amount rather than at zero
- Risk limits refresh
Please note this timing when planning your trading schedule and managing your daily risk limits. If you are close to your daily loss limit, please allow some extra time around the reset.
Our Approach to Account Resets
We understand that even skilled traders occasionally face challenging market conditions or unexpected moves. That’s why resets are included in your subscription - there are no reset charges within your reset allowance.
How many you have depends on your package:
- Assessment Only ($389/month) - 3 resets on the account, so four attempts in total. Once those are used, a further breach closes the account. To continue, you will need to register again and pay for a new account, on either package. Fees paid on the closed account will not be credited and will not move across to the new account.
- Assessment + Development ($789/month) - unlimited resets, giving you room to put coaching into practice, learn from each attempt and build consistency as you develop.
Needing one or two resets does not reduce your potential as a trader.
Important Reset Guidelines:
- After each reset, your account will be locked from additional resets for 12 hours. This cooling-off period is mandatory. If resets become routine, this shows a problem with risk management that would not be acceptable on the Live Desk. Use the time to step back, work out what happened, and adjust your approach.
- Document specific circumstances leading to the reset while they're fresh in your mind
- Prepare to discuss your reset history when your account is reviewed for the Live Desk.
One Point to Note:
While resets give you a fresh account balance, they don't erase your trading history on that account.
Every trade you make, whether before or after a reset, contributes to your overall trading profile.
Here's Why This Matters:
We're not simply measuring your ability to hit a profit target once. Instead, we're building a comprehensive profile of your trading edge and risk management efficiency. When reviewing a trader for the Live Desk, we look at:
- Your complete trading history across all resets on your account
- Risk-adjusted returns, not just raw profits
- Patterns in your decision-making and risk management
- How you learn and adapt from challenging periods
Think of the assessment as building your trading resume. Each reset tells part of your story - not just the final profitable stretch.
While we evaluate each trader's journey individually, consistent reset patterns might signal areas where your risk management strategy needs refinement.
If we notice patterns suggesting resets are becoming a substitute for proper risk management, we'll have a conversation about your development as a trader. Our goal is to help you build the kind of trading practices that hold up on the Live Desk.
Daily Loss Limit ($2,000)
- This is a hard limit, not a soft guideline
- The $2,000 daily loss limit aligns with standard exchange trading sessions
- Your daily P&L resets with each new trading session at 16:37:00 America/Chicago, as set out above
- Realised profit or loss from the session that has just ended does not carry into the new one. What does carry across is the unrealised P&L on any open position, measured at the settlement price. A position carried at $3,000 unrealised profit gives you $5,000 of headroom in the new session; a position carried at $500 down leaves you with $1,500
- A violation requires an account reset, regardless of whether your account is profitable overall. For example, even if your account is at $105,000 and you hit the $2,000 daily loss limit, this is still a hard violation
Maximum Drawdown Limit ($8,000)
- Your account has a static floor at $92,000 (starting from $100,000)
- This represents a maximum drawdown of $8,000 from your starting balance
- Breaching this floor at any point is a violation, even if you're managing smaller daily losses
Important Notes About Violations:
- Either limit can trigger a violation independently
- You can have multiple days of smaller losses (e.g., $1,000) and still be within the limits
- However, exceeding either the daily loss or max drawdown limit at any point requires a reset
Documentation Recommendations: If you need to reset your account, we’d suggest you:
- Document the circumstances that led to the violation
- Keep detailed notes about your decision-making process
- Be prepared to explain this when your account is reviewed for the Live Desk
This documentation recommendation is designed to help you learn from the experience and demonstrate your growth as a trader. We view these moments as valuable learning opportunities that can strengthen your risk management approach.
If you have any questions, please reach out to support@developtraders.com.