Interview with "Traders with Edge"

Allison:

Hello, this is Allison PropConnect, and I'm delighted to welcome you.

In today's interview, we have a special guest with us. Samuel Youngin, the founder of Traders with Edge, thank you, Samuel, for joining us today. We appreciate the effort that you put in to share your insights and experience with our audience.

Samuel Youngin:

Welcome and thank you for having me.

Allison:

All right, so I've got a bunch of questions for you. First, let's start with:

How did Traders with Edge come into existence as a company, and what were the biggest challenges that you faced during its establishment?

Samuel Youngin:

So we used to have a funds management company in the Forex Trading space, and we knew it was predominantly an algorithm Trading company, so we used to build algorithms and test them. And then, you know, go live and manage clients' funds for high-net-worth individuals. What we found is the cost and the time that it would take to build these models and back test them forward.

In 2020, I think it was, and that's where it kind of all started was that idea of wanting to bring in more strategies to the company. In terms of the biggest challenges, there's always challenges with starting up a new business. You know, new technology, sorting out all your systems and processes. What are the challenges of being a new company? In the space, I mean, most prop firms are new in the space, so it's really funny when we first opened the doors in 2022, at the start of 2022, people said, "Oh, you're too new, we don't trust you, blah, blah, blah." And then really, there are so many prop firms starting at the same time and we're all the same age. Then you fast forward till now, people are still saying the same thing. They're like, "Oh, but you're just so new." It's like, no, hang on, we're not new, like pretty much everyone's new except just a couple of other firms out there. So it's really, you know, because it's not really a challenge, but it's just an interesting insight into how people think about it.

Allison:

Of course. What makes Traders with Edge stand out from other prop rooms in the industry?

Samuel Youngin:

I guess our biggest point of difference is that we allow traders to customize their challenges based on their trading style. So we have the traditional one-phase, two-phase, and instant funding models, but then we allow traders to increase their drawdown and change some of the parameters on their challenge to suit their trading style. That's probably the biggest point of difference in what we do. But aside from that, we're always focused on customer service, getting back to people really quickly, and working with the trader because our long-term vision is to build a big pool of traders that we can work together in the long term on managing funds.

Allison:

Customer service is very important for any business, so that is fantastic that that's the main focus of your company. Could you elaborate on the funding programs that Traders with Edge provides for Traders?

Samuel Youngin:

Yeah, sure. So as I mentioned, we've got the traditional one-phase, which we call it a turtle challenge. Because you've got a whole year to pass, it's got a five percent drawdown with the 10 target. Then we've got the two-phase challenge, which is your traditional type two-phase challenge. All the accounts have account scaling, so anywhere from your traditional site scaling to rapid scaling. Rapid scaling is quite rare in the industry where if the trader leaves their profits in the account, we will also leave our profits in the account and top it up, allowing people to exponentially grow their account size.

Allison:

That's great. So let's talk about some of your Traders. Can you share a compelling story of one of the traders who joined Traders with Edge?

Samuel Youngin:

Sure, so not giving away personal details, let's just call him Jim. But Jim came through probably around the start of this year and we first saw him he took a challenge, he didn't make it. I think he subsequently took two other challenges and didn't pass. He then passed a challenge on a 200k two-phase account and he's now gone on for multiple payouts and just this week we paid him. He took a withdrawal of nine thousand dollars U.S. So, you know, it just goes to show that just because you fail once, it doesn't mean that you're a failure or you're a loser or you're not cut out for prop trading. It's a difficult industry, it's a difficult skill, but if you just focus on yourself, journal your trades, improve step by step, you'll eventually get there like this guy has, and he's now doing really well and receiving regular payouts from us.

Allison:

It's hard starting out. There is a lot on the line, but you do need to learn somehow, so that's great to hear that you have plenty of traders who are making it and finding success. All right, now let's move on and talk about some key statistics about Traders with Edge. So I'm curious to know if you can talk about the number of traders you have and also what is the most popular program?

Samuel Youngin:

Yeah, sure. So we find a few interesting things. One is the two-phase challenge typically has a higher pass rate than the one phase. But what we do find is that on the lower end, like on the 5 and 10K one-phase challenges, we get a lot more people who come through there and pass and keep their accounts. So it seems like the people that are taking the smaller challenges are passing and then they keep their account, as opposed to some of the big ones where people just swing for the fences and blow their account. So we're seeing a trend in the smaller accounts where they manage their accounts better and ultimately they're more successful.

Allison:

Which is preferable for traders starting with a conventional Forex broker or a prop room like Traders with Edge and why?

Samuel Youngin:

You could approach this from a number of different perspectives. I guess everyone should start trading on a demo account from the start, at least for six months, if not 12 months or more. Ideally, a demo account with live conditions if you can find one that has slippage and spreads and changing market conditions. Many demo accounts don't have realistic trading conditions, which can be a disadvantage when transitioning to live trading. It's practicing on demo accounts first. Then, it's really a numbers game. If you consider you have a thousand dollars and you put that in your traditional Forex brokerage account, you're putting a whole thousand dollars at risk potentially. But if you take a challenge and pass it, a thousand dollars is probably equivalent to a two hundred thousand dollar account, which allows for more potential profit. So it's about managing risk and comparing the potential profits in different scenarios.

Allison:

That makes sense. In your experience, what are some common mistakes that traders tend to make?

Samuel Youngin:

Good question. Typically, what we see is that people are too impatient. They want money in the bank now, they want to pass the challenge now and get funded. People also tend to force trades when there might not be good opportunities in the market because they want to pass faster. Another common mistake is not understanding their risk and not managing it properly. It's important to understand the impact of risk on their trading accounts and to manage it effectively to increase their chances of success.

Allison:

All right, so going off that, what do you consider to be the major challenges that traders face in the industry and how does Traders with Edge assist traders in overcoming these challenges?

Samuel Youngin:

From our experience, one of the biggest challenges that traders face in the industry is not having enough capital. That's why prop firms are more attractive than traditional brokers. However, some prop firms make the trading conditions too easy to attract traders, which can lead to unrealistic expectations and failure. At Traders with Edge, we aim to strike a balance between providing attractive trading conditions and maintaining realistic expectations. We focus on transparency, building trust, and providing support to traders in their journey. We also offer educational resources and mentorship opportunities to help traders improve their skills and increase their chances of success in the long run.

Allison:

I like that approach. What is the most valuable advice that you would give someone who's considering starting a career in trading?

Samuel Youngin:

My advice would be to get familiar with the setup, the technology, and know it like the back of your hand. Practice on demo accounts for an extended period of time until you're consistently profitable. Work on yourself, develop the right mindset, and manage your risk effectively. Treat trading as a business and be prepared for the challenges and the learning curve. It takes time, effort, and dedication to become a successful trader, but with the right mindset and approach, it is definitely achievable.

Allison:

Thank you so much, Samuel, for sharing your insights and experiences with us today. It was a pleasure having you.

Samuel Youngin:

Thank you for having me. It was a pleasure talking to you.

Allison:

And thank you to our listeners for tuning in. We hope you found this interview informative and inspiring. Stay tuned for more insightful discussions.