Quick Answer — FundedNext News Trading
- • FundedNext allows news trading on all account types, but the profit treatment differs dramatically between challenge, funded CFD, and futures accounts.
- • As of April 2026, FundedNext's funded CFD accounts (Stellar 1-Step, 2-Step, Lite) apply the News Reward Share Rule: only 40% of profit from trades within 5 minutes before or after high-impact news counts toward your balance.
- • FundedNext counts 100% of losses from news trades on funded CFD accounts. The asymmetry is the real risk: you keep 40% of wins but absorb every dollar of losses.
- • FundedNext Futures accounts (Rapid, Legacy, Bolt) have zero news trading restrictions and zero profit reduction, making them one of the most permissive futures prop firms for news events.
- • FundedNext Stellar Instant accounts are also fully exempt from the News Reward Share Rule, with no profit reduction on news trades.
Learned the hard way: I've traded FundedNext through NFP, FOMC, and CPI releases on both CFD and futures accounts. The news rule is one of those things that doesn't hurt you until payout day, when you realize your balance didn't grow the way you expected. I've seen the adjustment firsthand and it changes how you plan your entire cycle.
I covered every FundedNext rule in my complete FundedNext rules guide. For the full picture, read my complete FundedNext review. For the absolute latest, check FundedNext's website or their help center.
FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule reduces your counted profit to 40% on any trade opened or closed within 5 minutes of a high-impact news event on funded CFD accounts. Losses from those same trades count at 100%. The rule applies to Stellar 1-Step, 2-Step, and Lite funded accounts only. Challenge accounts, Stellar Instant, and all FundedNext Futures accounts are completely exempt.
I've been trading FundedNext across CFD and futures for a while now, and the news rule is one of the least understood mechanics in their system. It doesn't block you from trading. It doesn't flag your account. It just quietly reduces what you earned, after the cycle ends. You won't see it reflected in your MT5 balance in real time. You see it when your payout is lower than you expected.
This guide breaks down exactly how the 10-minute window works, which account types are affected, and how much the rule actually costs you with real numbers from common news events.
Does FundedNext Allow News Trading?
Yes. FundedNext allows news trading on every single account type. There is no outright ban, no suspension of trading, and no account breach for placing trades around high-impact news events.
But "allowed" and "unrestricted" aren't the same thing at FundedNext.
The difference comes down to profit treatment. On challenge accounts, you keep 100% of whatever you earn during news events. On funded CFD accounts, you keep 40% of what you earn. On futures accounts, you keep everything. On Stellar Instant, you keep everything.
As of April 2026, here's the breakdown:
- Challenge phase (all CFD models): News trading fully allowed. No profit reduction. No restrictions whatsoever.
- Funded phase (Stellar 1-Step, 2-Step, Lite): News trading allowed, but the News Reward Share Rule applies. Only 40% of news-window profit counts.
- Stellar Instant (all phases): News trading fully allowed. No profit reduction.
- FundedNext Futures (Rapid, Legacy, Bolt): News trading fully allowed. No profit reduction. No special rules.
The challenge phase is irrelevant to this discussion. Trade NFP, trade FOMC, trade whatever you want. Your full profit counts. It's the funded phase on CFD where everything changes.
How Does FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule Work?
FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule defines a 10-minute window around high-impact news events on funded CFD accounts. The window opens 5 minutes before the scheduled release and closes 5 minutes after. Any trade that's opened, closed, or partially closed inside that window is subject to profit adjustment.
Here's how the mechanics break down:
The 40% profit count. If you make $1,000 in profit on a trade that falls within the news window, only $400 counts toward your balance. The other $600 is removed after the cycle ends.
The 100% loss count. If you lose $1,000 on the same type of trade, you absorb all $1,000. There's no 40% discount on losses. This asymmetry is the real bite of the rule.
Partial closures count. If you close part of a position inside the window and the rest outside, FundedNext treats the entire order as a news trade. You can't game the window by scaling out.
Only correlated pairs are affected. A USD news event won't affect your EUR/GBP trade. FundedNext only applies the rule to instruments directly tied to the news release. If NFP hits, your EUR/USD and GBP/USD trades are affected. Your AUD/NZD trade is not.
Adjustments happen after the cycle ends. You won't see the reduction on your balance in real time. FundedNext calculates the adjustment at the end of the payout cycle and applies it before your reward is processed.
That last point is what catches people. Your running balance on MT5 shows the full profit. You plan your cycle around that number. Then the adjustment comes and your actual payout is smaller.
What Is the 10-Minute News Window at FundedNext?
The FundedNext news window is a fixed 10-minute period: 5 minutes before and 5 minutes after the scheduled time of a high-impact news release. FundedNext uses the economic calendar for high-impact events only.
If NFP is scheduled for 8:30 AM ET, the window runs from 8:25 AM ET to 8:35 AM ET.
Any trade that touches this window gets flagged. "Touches" means:
- You opened a new position inside the window
- You closed an existing position inside the window
- You partially closed a position inside the window
If you opened a trade at 8:00 AM and closed it at 8:32 AM, the full profit on that trade is subject to the 40% rule. It doesn't matter that you opened it 30 minutes before. The close happened inside the window.
If you opened at 8:27 AM and closed at 9:15 AM, same thing. The open happened inside the window.
The cleanest way to avoid the rule: close everything at least 6 minutes before the release, and don't open anything until at least 6 minutes after. Give yourself a buffer. Server clocks and your local clock may differ by a few seconds.
How Much Does the 40% Rule Actually Cost You?
Let's put real numbers on this.
Scenario 1: NFP Winner
You're trading a FundedNext funded 2-Step 100K account. NFP drops at 8:30 AM ET. You catch a strong move on EUR/USD and close out $2,000 in profit at 8:33 AM.
- Gross profit: $2,000
- Counted profit (40%): $800
- Effective profit lost: $1,200
Your MT5 balance shows +$2,000. But at the end of the cycle, FundedNext adjusts it to +$800 for payout calculation. With an 80% reward share, your actual payout from that trade is $640 instead of $1,600. You left $960 on the table.
Scenario 2: NFP Loser
Same setup. NFP goes against you. You lose $1,500.
- Gross loss: $1,500
- Counted loss (100%): $1,500
No discount. No adjustment. The full $1,500 hits your balance and your drawdown.
Scenario 3: FOMC Mixed Day
You take two trades around the 2:00 PM FOMC release. Trade 1 wins $3,000. Trade 2 loses $1,000. Net on your balance: +$2,000.
After the News Reward Share adjustment:
- Trade 1 counted profit: $3,000 x 40% = $1,200
- Trade 2 counted loss: $1,000 x 100% = $1,000
- Net after adjustment: +$200
Your MT5 says you made $2,000 on those trades. Your payout calculation says $200.
This is the scenario that hurts the most. A net-positive day that turns into almost nothing after the adjustment.
The Math Table
| Scenario | Gross P/L | After 40% Rule | Payout (80% Share) | Effective Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,000 win | +$2,000 | +$800 | $640 | $960 lost |
| $1,500 loss | -$1,500 | -$1,500 | N/A | $0 saved |
| +$3,000 / -$1,000 | +$2,000 net | +$200 net | $160 | $1,440 lost |
| $5,000 win | +$5,000 | +$2,000 | $1,600 | $2,400 lost |
The pattern is clear. The bigger your news trade profits, the more the rule costs you. And any losses remain untouched.
Which News Events Trigger FundedNext's 40% Rule?
FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule applies only to high-impact news events. Medium- and low-impact releases don't trigger the window.
The events that consistently qualify:
- Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) — first Friday of every month, 8:30 AM ET
- FOMC Interest Rate Decision — eight times per year, 2:00 PM ET
- CPI (Consumer Price Index) — monthly, typically second week, 8:30 AM ET
- ECB Interest Rate Decision — roughly every six weeks
- Bank of England Rate Decision — eight times per year
- GDP (Advance/Preliminary/Final) — quarterly releases
- PPI (Producer Price Index) — monthly
- Retail Sales — monthly, 8:30 AM ET
- Employment Cost Index — quarterly
FundedNext follows the economic calendar classifications. If ForexFactory or Investing.com marks an event as high-impact (red), FundedNext's system treats it the same way. The exact calendar source FundedNext uses isn't publicly specified, but the alignment is consistent with major economic calendar providers.
My approach: I keep the ForexFactory calendar open and filter for red-flag events. If it's red, I assume the FundedNext window applies. Better to plan around a non-event than get caught by one you didn't check.
Why Is Stellar Instant Exempt From the News Rule?
FundedNext's Stellar Instant account has no News Reward Share Rule. You can trade any high-impact event with zero profit reduction, regardless of timing.
The reason comes down to account structure. Stellar Instant has no challenge phase, no evaluation, and a 6% trailing drawdown as the primary risk control. FundedNext designed it as a simplified model with fewer restrictions across the board: no daily loss limit, no minimum trading days, and no weekend holding restrictions either.
As of April 2026, Stellar Instant is the only CFD model at FundedNext where news trading is completely unrestricted in the funded phase.
The trade-off is real though. Stellar Instant starts with a lower reward share (70% at Tiers 1-2, 80% at Tier 3+), a maximum starting size of $20,000, and a trailing drawdown instead of a static one. If you're a dedicated news trader running a CFD strategy, Stellar Instant removes the 40% haircut but introduces other constraints.
For a $20,000 account, those constraints might be worth it. For larger capital, the challenge models still offer bigger starting sizes despite the news rule.
Are FundedNext Futures Accounts Restricted During News?
No. FundedNext Futures accounts have zero news trading restrictions. No profit reduction, no special windows, no adjustments.
As of April 2026, this applies to all three FundedNext Futures models: Rapid, Legacy, and Bolt. Trade NFP on ES futures, trade FOMC on NQ, trade CPI on any instrument. Every dollar of profit counts at full value. Every dollar of loss counts the same way.
This makes FundedNext Futures one of the most permissive prop firms for news trading in the industry. Many CFD-focused firms ban news trading entirely during funded phases. FundedNext Futures doesn't even have the partial restriction that their own CFD side does.
If news events are central to your strategy and you trade index or currency futures, FundedNext Futures removes the entire concern. No calendar checking, no 10-minute windows, no payout surprises.
The one caveat: FundedNext Futures doesn't allow overnight holding. All positions must be closed before the end of the trading day (3:10 PM CT during daylight saving time). So you can trade the news release itself, but you can't hold a position through an overnight event.
How Does FundedNext Compare to Other Firms on News Trading?
News trading rules vary wildly across prop firms. Some ban it outright. Others allow it with conditions. A few have no restrictions at all.
| Firm | Type | News Trading Policy | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| FundedNext | CFD (funded) | Allowed, 40% profit | 10-min window, 40% profit counted, 100% losses counted |
| FundedNext | Futures | Fully allowed 🏆 | No restrictions, no profit reduction, all models |
| FTMO | CFD | Banned during funded | No trading within 2 min of high-impact events on funded accounts |
| TopStep | Futures | Fully allowed | No restrictions on news trading |
| Apex Trader Funding | Futures | Fully allowed | No restrictions on news trading |
| E8 Funding | CFD | Restricted | Trading allowed but profits may be adjusted; rules vary by account type |
The futures side of the industry is generally more permissive. TopStep, Apex, and FundedNext Futures all allow unrestricted news trading. On the CFD/forex side, restrictions are the norm. FTMO bans it entirely on funded accounts. E8 has variable restrictions. FundedNext's 40% rule sits in the middle: not a ban, but not full freedom either.
If news trading is a core part of your strategy, the choice is straightforward. Futures firms give you the most freedom. Among CFD firms, FundedNext at least lets you trade the events, even if the profit treatment is reduced.
How Should You Handle FundedNext's News Window?
There are three approaches, and the right one depends on how central news trading is to your strategy.
Option 1: Avoid the window entirely
Close all positions at least 6 minutes before the scheduled release. Don't reopen anything until 6 minutes after. This way, none of your trades get flagged. You keep 100% of everything.
The downside: you miss the biggest moves of the month. NFP and FOMC routinely produce 50-100+ pip moves in seconds. If you sit out, that opportunity cost is real.
Option 2: Trade through it and accept the 40%
Some traders decide the 40% is worth it. If you consistently capture large moves during NFP or FOMC, even 40% of a $5,000 winner ($2,000 counted) is better than sitting on the sideline. Run the math on your historical performance. If your average news trade nets $3,000+ and your average non-news day makes $500, the reduced news profit still outperforms.
The risk is on the loss side. If the release goes against you, you eat the full loss with no discount. So this approach only makes sense if your news trading has a strong positive expectancy.
Option 3: Trade the aftermath, not the release
Enter positions after the 10-minute window closes. Many of the best news trades happen in the continuation move 15-30 minutes after the release, not in the initial spike. By waiting until the window closes, your profit counts at 100%.
The trade-off: you miss the initial spike, and sometimes the continuation doesn't materialize. But you eliminate the 40% haircut completely while still benefiting from the increased volatility that follows major releases.
I use a mix of Option 1 and Option 3 on my funded CFD accounts. I close everything before the release, wait for the window to pass, and then look for setups in the post-news move. On my futures accounts, I trade straight through. No reason not to.
What Happens if You're Already in a Trade When News Hits?
This is the scenario that catches people. You opened a position two hours before NFP. You're not news trading. But NFP drops, the market moves, and you decide to close your position at 8:33 AM because your take-profit got hit.
That closure happened inside the 10-minute window. FundedNext classifies the entire trade's profit as a news trade. The 40% rule applies.
It doesn't matter that you opened the trade hours before. The close is what triggers the classification.
The same logic works in reverse. If you open a trade at 8:28 AM (inside the window) and hold it until 10:00 AM, FundedNext still flags it. The open happened inside the window.
Three ways to protect yourself:
- Set take-profits well before the window opens so they trigger before the news
- If you're in a trade, move your stop-loss and take-profit to levels that won't trigger during the 10-minute window
- Accept that some trades will get caught. If you're holding a swing position through a news event, the 40% haircut on that specific trade might be acceptable compared to the alternative of closing at a worse price
Can FundedNext Change the News Trading Rule?
Yes, and they have before. Prop firm rules are not permanent. FundedNext has adjusted multiple rules over the past year, including profit targets on futures, leverage on funded CFD accounts, and scale-up criteria. The News Reward Share Rule could be tightened or loosened at any time.
As of April 2026, the rule has been stable for several months. But if you're planning your entire strategy around specific rule mechanics, check the FundedNext help center regularly. I've seen firms change news rules with as little as a week's notice.
The most likely change would be to the window size (currently 10 minutes) or the profit percentage (currently 40%). Some traders speculate FundedNext could remove the rule entirely for funded accounts to stay competitive. Others think they could tighten it further. Nobody knows. Plan for the current rule, not a hypothetical future version.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does FundedNext allow news trading?
Yes, FundedNext allows news trading on every account type. Challenge accounts have zero restrictions. Funded CFD accounts (Stellar 1-Step, 2-Step, Lite) allow news trading but apply the News Reward Share Rule, which counts only 40% of profit from trades within the 10-minute window. FundedNext Stellar Instant and all FundedNext Futures accounts have no news restrictions at all.
What is FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule?
FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule applies to funded CFD accounts and reduces counted profit to 40% for any trade opened or closed within 5 minutes before or after a high-impact news event. FundedNext counts 100% of losses from those same trades. The adjustment is applied after the payout cycle ends, not in real time.
How long is FundedNext's news trading window?
FundedNext's news trading window is 10 minutes total: 5 minutes before and 5 minutes after the scheduled time of a high-impact news release. FundedNext bases the window on the official economic calendar timing. Any trade opened, closed, or partially closed inside this window is subject to the 40% profit adjustment on funded CFD accounts.
Does FundedNext's news rule apply to futures accounts?
No. FundedNext Futures accounts (Rapid, Legacy, and Bolt) have zero news trading restrictions. FundedNext does not apply any profit reduction, window restrictions, or special rules to futures accounts during high-impact news events. Every dollar of profit counts at full value.
Does the FundedNext news rule apply during the challenge phase?
No. FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule only applies to funded CFD accounts. During the challenge phase on any FundedNext CFD model, news trading is fully unrestricted and 100% of profit counts toward your profit target. The rule activates only after you pass the challenge and receive a funded account.
How much profit do you lose on FundedNext news trades?
FundedNext counts only 40% of profit from news-window trades on funded CFD accounts, meaning you lose 60% of the gross profit. On a $2,000 news trade profit, only $800 counts toward your FundedNext balance. Combined with the 80% reward share, your actual payout from that trade would be $640 instead of $1,600.
Is FundedNext Stellar Instant affected by the news rule?
No. FundedNext Stellar Instant is completely exempt from the News Reward Share Rule. FundedNext Stellar Instant traders can trade any high-impact event with zero profit reduction. The exemption applies at all tiers and scales. The trade-off is a smaller starting account size (max $20,000) and a trailing drawdown instead of a static one.
What news events trigger FundedNext's 40% rule?
FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule is triggered by high-impact economic events only. These include Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP), FOMC interest rate decisions, CPI, ECB rate decisions, Bank of England decisions, GDP releases, and other events classified as high-impact on major economic calendars. FundedNext does not apply the rule to medium- or low-impact events.
Can you avoid FundedNext's news rule by closing trades before the window?
Yes. If you close all positions at least 6 minutes before a high-impact event and don't open new trades until at least 6 minutes after, FundedNext's News Reward Share Rule won't affect your trades. The key is ensuring no trade is opened, closed, or partially closed inside the 5-minutes-before to 5-minutes-after window. FundedNext checks both the open and close timestamps.
Should you trade news on a FundedNext funded account?
It depends on your strategy and expected value. FundedNext's 40% profit count reduces the reward, but if your news trades consistently produce large gains, the 40% of a $5,000 winner ($2,000 counted) may still outperform regular trading days on your FundedNext account. The critical risk is that FundedNext counts 100% of losses, creating asymmetric exposure. Run the numbers on your own historical news trades before deciding.
The bottom line: FundedNext doesn't ban news trading, but the 40% profit rule on funded CFD accounts changes the math significantly. If you make $2,000 during NFP, only $800 counts. If you lose $2,000, all of it counts. That asymmetry is the real cost. FundedNext Futures and Stellar Instant are fully exempt, making them the better choice if news events are central to your strategy. For funded CFD traders, the decision is straightforward: either sit out the 10-minute window and trade the aftermath, or accept the reduced profit and make sure your edge is strong enough to justify it.
