Crypto vs. CFD Evaluation at Dolvero: Which Rules Differ

Both the crypto challenge (Bybit Demo) and the forex CFD evaluation (MT5/DolveroTrader) aim to identify disciplined, profitable traders and fund them with firm capital. But the rules are not identical — and the differences matter. This article maps every rule comparison between the two product lines so you can choose the right path for your trading style.

Side-by-Side Rule Comparison

The Daily Loss Limit: 5% vs. 4% vs. 3%

This is the most immediately visible difference. The forex CFD evaluation gives you a 5% daily loss buffer. The crypto 2-step gives you 4%. The crypto 1-step gives you only 3%.

Why tighter daily limits on crypto? Two reasons:

Volatility is structurally higher. BTC can move 5–8% on a significant news event. ETH and altcoins can move 10–20% on exchange announcements, regulatory news, or token-specific events. A 5% daily limit in a 10% daily mover environment leaves almost no margin for error. The tighter 4% and 3% limits are calibrated for the actual volatility regime of crypto markets, not borrowed from forex convention.

Leverage amplification. With up to 50× leverage available, even a modest adverse move in the underlying can quickly reach daily loss limits on a fully leveraged position. The tighter daily loss cap functions as a leverage governor in practice — traders who use leverage aggressively will hit the daily limit before they can catastrophically damage their account.

From a trader's perspective: if your strategy is built around wide intraday swings and recovering from large drawdowns within the same session, the crypto challenge is the harder product. If your strategy targets smaller, consistent gains with tight stops, the tighter daily limit is less constraining.

Drawdown: Static vs. Trailing (Critical Difference)

The forex evaluation and crypto 2-step both use static drawdown. Your floor is fixed from the moment your account is created — it never moves up. If your account starts at $100,000, the 6% drawdown floor for crypto is $94,000, forever, regardless of whether your account grows to $115,000 and then retreats.

The crypto 1-step uses trailing drawdown. Your floor moves upward with your equity peak.

Example on a $100,000 account with 6% trailing drawdown:

• Day 1: Account grows to $108,000. Floor moves to $108,000 × (1 − 0.06) = $101,520
• Day 3: Account grows to $112,000. Floor moves to $112,000 × (1 − 0.06) = $105,280
• Day 5: Market reversal, account drops to $106,000. You are still above $105,280 — safe
• Day 6: Account drops to $104,500. Breach — below the $105,280 trailing floor

With static drawdown (2-step): your floor is $94,000 throughout, and you could retrace all the way from $112,000 to $94,001 without breaching. The same 1-step trailing structure would have breached you much earlier.

Practical implication: Trailing drawdown rewards linear, consistent growth. It penalizes volatile equity curves — strategies with large swings, even if net profitable. Momentum strategies, high-frequency scalping with variable win rates, and strategies that take occasional large losses as part of their edge will be better suited to the static drawdown structure of the 2-step challenge.

The Consistency Rule: Crypto Only

The forex CFD evaluation has no consistency rule. A trader could make 9% profit in a single day (day 1) and 1% across the next 3 days and pass the challenge. The 10% target is a target, not a behavioral template.

Both crypto challenge types enforce a consistency rule: no single trading day may account for more than 15% of total challenge profit.

Example on a 10% profit target for a $100,000 account (target = $10,000):

• If you make $10,000 profit in one day and $0 on other days — you hit the 10% target, but that one day = 100% of total profit. Violation.
• If you make $1,600 on Day 1 and distribute the remaining $8,400 across other days with no single day exceeding $1,500 — you are within the 15% cap. Passes consistency.
• The practical ceiling per day is: (total profit at payout) × 15% = variable depending on final total

This rule targets "lucky day" passing — traders who get a single extremely profitable trade on a high-leverage position and coast to the target. It does not penalize good trading days; it penalizes strategies where a single catastrophic-upside event does all the work.

For systematic traders with consistent edge, the consistency rule is not a meaningful constraint. For discretionary traders who take occasional oversized positions, it requires attention.

Weekend and News Trading: Permitted vs. Restricted

On the forex CFD evaluation, weekend holding (positions open after Friday 4:55 PM EST) and news trading (within ±30 minutes of high-impact scheduled events) are restricted by default. Both can be unlocked with add-ons:

• Weekend Trading add-on: +€82
• News trading restrictions vary by plan — check current rule set

On crypto challenges, both are fully permitted with no add-on required and no conditions. The rationale is structural — crypto markets trade 24/7 and are inherently driven by news events. Applying weekend and news trading restrictions to a 24/7 news-driven market would make the rules incoherent.

If news trading is central to your strategy and you trade crypto instruments, the crypto challenge is the more natural vehicle. If you trade forex but want news trading access, the add-on on the CFD evaluation is available.

Minimum Trading Days: Required vs. None

The forex CFD evaluation requires a minimum of 4 trading days before passing. This prevents luck-based passing — a trader who opens one very profitable trade on day 1 and closes it same-day has not demonstrated consistent trading behavior.

Crypto challenges have no minimum trading day requirement. The consistency rule serves a similar function (preventing any single day from dominating the total P&L), but you could technically pass in fewer than 4 days if your trading is distributed across multiple profitable sessions and no single day exceeds the 15% cap.

The Inactivity Rule: Crypto-Specific

The crypto challenge introduces an inactivity rule not present in the forex evaluation: if your challenge account goes 7 consecutive calendar days without a single trade, the account is flagged as inactive. Depending on where you are in the challenge, this may result in a warning or account termination.

This rule exists because crypto challenges have no time limit per phase (unlike some forex evaluations with 30-day or 60-day windows). Without an inactivity rule, a trader could purchase a challenge, do nothing for months, and then enter when market conditions seem ideal. The inactivity rule creates a baseline activity requirement that reflects the spirit of an active trading evaluation.

Which Product Is Right for You?

Choose the Forex CFD evaluation if:

• You trade forex pairs, indices, or commodities as your primary instruments
• Your strategy involves large intraday swings and you need the wider 5% daily loss buffer
• You prefer static drawdown with a wider 10% maximum
• You want access to platform add-ons (weekend trading, no risk limit)
• You trade exclusively on MT5 and want a familiar environment

Choose the Crypto 2-Step if:

• You trade USDT perpetual contracts natively
• You need access to altcoins beyond BTC and ETH
• You want static drawdown in a crypto context (easier than trailing)
• You prefer on-chain USDT payouts
• Your strategy involves bots or algorithmic trading on Bybit

Choose the Crypto 1-Step if:

• You have a consistent, linear equity curve and want a direct single-phase path to funding
• You are comfortable managing trailing drawdown mechanics
• You prefer a simpler challenge structure without a second evaluation phase

Questions about which challenge fits your specific strategy? Contact our team — describe your typical trade frequency, average hold time, and risk per trade, and we will tell you which product your metrics are most compatible with.

Ready to start? View all challenge options here.