# Phidias Propfirm vs ROMER

> Phidias suits hand traders, scalpers included, who want a quick, rule-based route to a small live account: pass Express to Live, hit the target again and switch to real capital. It bans robots and HFT but allows semi-automated tools you supervise. ROMER is built for fully automated and high-frequency strategies, run on our hardware at the exchange.

Last checked: 2026-10-01. Page: https://romertrading.io/compare/phidias-vs-romer. Published by ROMER (https://romertrading.io), a funded-trader program for algorithmic and high-frequency traders. ROMER's terms are planned and may change.

## At a glance

| | Phidias Propfirm | ROMER |
|---|---|---|
| Markets | CME Group futures, plus Eurex on two plans; live accounts cleared by Dorman Trading | Futures and digital-asset derivatives |
| Price, about $50K account | 50K Fundamental: $164 a month; 50K Express to Live: $278 once | $249 a month for $50K (planned) |
| Activation fee | $149 once after passing; none if you choose the one-time payment option | None (planned) |
| Funded account | CASH is simulated; LIVE trades Phidias's money, automatically on Express to Live | Our own capital on the real exchange, after two stages |
| Profit split | 80% on CASH and LIVE; Premium CASH rises from 75% to 100% | 80% of real profits |
| Bots and automation | Banned; semi-automated tools allowed if you monitor and adjust every trade | Allowed at every stage, and so is trading by hand |
| High-frequency trading | Banned in its terms; scalping allowed, with "No micro-scalping rules" | Allowed. Spoofing and other manipulation are not |
| Where your algo runs | No VPS rule found; account limits count per household, company or IP address | On our hardware, inside the exchange’s data centre |

## Phidias's three account types

Phidias Propfirm sells futures evaluations on CME Group markets, with Eurex added on two of its plans, traded through Rithmic, Tradovate and NinjaTrader, or DeepCharts. It lists prices in dollars and euros, and each account type can be bought either for a smaller fee plus an activation charge when you pass, or with one larger payment that carries no activation fee ([accounts](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/accounts)).

Express to Live, or E2L, is the one built for speed. A 50K costs $278, plus $149 to activate once you pass, or $723 paid once with no activation fee. The target is $2,500, and the drawdown is a static $650: "The static drawdown never trails" ([rules](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/rules)). E2L has no daily loss limit and no consistency rule, positions have to be closed by the end of each day, and there are no resets: "No reset can occur as part of 10K Drawdown or Express to Live (E2L) account evaluations" ([terms](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/tou)).

Fundamental is the standard account, billed monthly. A 50K costs $164 a month plus $149 on passing, or $580 once. It asks for $4,000 of profit within a $2,500 drawdown that is set at each day's close, and at least 3 trading days. Premium costs $329 a month for 50K, plus $149 on passing, or $723 once, with the same target and drawdown, a one-day minimum and overnight holds: "Positions on Premium accounts can remain open overnight and over-week, with a lot size corresponding to the size of your account."

The rules page contradicts itself on E2L's minimum. Its E2L table lists no minimum trading days, while the General Rules box on the same page says "Min. Trading Days to Pass 3 days", and the comparison table in the price configurator says 1.

## Robots, semi-automation and speed

Phidias draws its line at supervision. The [rules](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/rules) say "The use of robots, fully automated trading algorithms, or any other form of automated trading is not permitted. Only semi-automated software is permitted, provided the trader actively monitors and manually adjusts all trades." A tool that helps you manage a trade you are watching fits. A strategy that trades on its own doesn't.

The [terms](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/tou) put HFT in the same clause, under the heading "Prohibition of automated trading and High frequency trading". Fast hand trading is treated differently. Phidias tells traders who prefer scalping, intraday or swing trading that "you have carte blanche as long as your trading is legitimate", and its [home page](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/) adds "No micro-scalping rules." What's banned beyond automation is narrower: one-tick Treasury arbitrage, and any attempt to exploit the simulated environment, which costs you access to your account. Our page on [what counts as HFT](/help/what-counts-as-hft-at-a-prop-firm) shows how other firms draw the line.

Phidias's rules, terms and help centre are silent on VPS and VPN use. The [FAQ](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/faq?locale=en) says only "Yes, we offer the flexibility of remote trading. You can trade from anywhere with a reliable Internet connection." What Phidias does track is who owns what. Each household, company, IP address or internet connection can hold up to 5 CASH Premium, 5 CASH Fundamental and 5 E2L accounts. Copy trading across those is allowed, but "If we discover identical strategies exceeding the maximum allowed capital, we reserve the right to suspend these accounts" ([accounts and copy trading](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/14-nombre-de-comptes-autorises-et-copy-trading)).

## CASH, LIVE and the Switch to Live button

Phidias names its two funded stages plainly. The terms describe a CASH account as one that lets the user trade "through a virtual space that replicates financial markets, with virtual funds made available on the account funded by the Company", and add that "The Company reserves the right to replicate operations performed by Users on real markets". A LIVE account is "fully funded by the Company with real money from the Company's funds", cleared by Dorman Trading.

On E2L, getting from one to the other is automatic. After passing, you reach the same target again on CASH, and then: "When the target is reached on the CASH account, click the 'Switch to Live' button. The fixed Bonus Payout is automatically credited to your Phidias Wallet (subject to the 80/20 profit split), the LIVE credit is applied to your new LIVE account, and your CASH account is converted to a LIVE trading account." On a 50K the bonus is $2,000 and the LIVE credit is $1,000. The live account can trade up to 3 lots, and its loss limit equals the LIVE credit. LIVE payouts are "Every day, no max limit ($500 min)". Each trader can hold one LIVE account, and failing a LIVE E2L account bars you from new E2L challenges for a month.

Fundamental and Premium work differently: "the live transition is strictly discretionary. A trader becomes eligible for consideration upon reaching 5 successful payouts or $100,000 in cumulative profits across all accounts." Phidias starts the move, the trader can't decline it, and "the profit split becomes 80% for the User and 20% for the Company, whatever profit split level had been reached on the CASH account." Until then the CASH payouts follow their own rules. Fundamental pays 80%, while Premium climbs from 75% on the first payout to 100% from the fifth, and Phidias points out that "There is no financial penalty for staying simulated." A Fundamental 50K payout needs 10 trading days of at least $150 each and no day above 30% of total profit, and it is capped at $2,000.

The payout pages contradict each other too. The rules page gives a minimum withdrawal of $500, and the terms say "The minimum withdrawal amount can never be less than $1,000."

## Our program

We designed ROMER for the traders Phidias turns away: those whose strategies run without a hand on every trade. Fully automated strategies, high-frequency ones included, are allowed throughout. Market manipulation such as spoofing isn't, and the exchange's message limits apply to every algo. Discretionary traders can join too, though the program is built around code, which runs on our hardware in the exchange's data centre.

Our route to real money is slower than Express to Live. An algo first trades simulated for 3 or more trading days and has to reach the target without breaching a loss limit. Verification then makes it pass again over 10 or more trading days it hasn't seen, still in simulation. Only then do the best algos move on to our capital on the real exchange, with 80% of the real profits paid to the trader. Even two passes don't guarantee funding. Our page on [running an algo from evaluation to live](/help/can-i-run-my-algo-from-evaluation-to-live) compares how 29 firms treat bots at each stage.

Planned terms, subject to change: a monthly fee of $249 for the $50K Pro plan, $149 for the $25K Starter and $399 for the $100K Elite, no activation fee, and rules of 6% profit to target, 4% trailing maximum loss and 2% daily loss. The fee pays for the algo's time on our hardware at the exchange. Once real money is involved, both firms pay the trader 80%.

## Which fits

Phidias fits discretionary futures traders, scalpers among them, who want a short, rule-driven path to a small live account with daily payouts, and Premium suits those who hold overnight. A semi-automated tool is fine there as long as you watch and adjust every trade yourself.

ROMER fits fully automated strategies, high-frequency ones included, that need to run without someone at the screen and benefit from sitting inside the exchange's data centre.

## Quick answers

**Does Phidias allow trading bots?**
No. Its rules say "The use of robots, fully automated trading algorithms, or any other form of automated trading is not permitted. Only semi-automated software is permitted, provided the trader actively monitors and manually adjusts all trades." Its terms ban high-frequency trading under the same heading.

**How does Express to Live work at Phidias?**
Pass the evaluation, reach the same profit target again on the simulated CASH account, then press "Switch to Live". On a 50K, Phidias credits a fixed $2,000 bonus, paid at 80/20, and converts the account to a live one with Dorman Trading, funded with a $1,000 trading credit.

**Is a Phidias CASH account real money?**
No. The terms describe trading "through a virtual space that replicates financial markets, with virtual funds", and Phidias may copy those trades on real markets itself. A LIVE account is "fully funded by the Company with real money from the Company's funds."

**Do I need a fully automated strategy to join ROMER?**
No. Algos are what we built ROMER for, but you may trade by hand at any stage. Manual orders still leave from your computer and travel the network before our hardware at the exchange routes them, so expect them to be slower than an algo that runs there.

## Sources

1. [Phidias Propfirm home page](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/)
2. [Phidias Propfirm: Accounts and prices](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/accounts)
3. [Phidias Propfirm: Rules](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/rules)
4. [Phidias Propfirm Terms of Use](https://phidiaspropfirm.com/tou)
5. [Phidias help centre FAQ (English)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/faq?locale=en)
6. [Phidias help centre: Number of accounts allowed and copy trading (French)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/14-nombre-de-comptes-autorises-et-copy-trading)
7. [Phidias help centre: Consistency policy (French)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/15-regularite-politique-de-coherence-chez-phidias-propfirm)
8. [Phidias help centre: Express to Live account rules (French)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/20-regles-compte-express-to-live-etl-e2l)
9. [Phidias help centre: Premium account rules (French)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/regles-compte-premium)
10. [Phidias help centre: Withdrawal requests and days per withdrawal (French)](https://helpcenter.phidiaspropfirm.com/help/6-demandes-de-retraits-et-nombre-de-jours-par-retrait)