Astra Capital Funding, which positioned itself as a new, well-backed prop trading firm, was forced to shut down within 36 hours after being exposed in a Twitter thread by @salmanmunir96. The closure followed a cascade of allegations around fake broker partnerships, suspicious demo accounts, and overall questionable operations.
Salman started investigating Astra when he noticed they offered “free resets” on trading challenges. He quickly uncovered several issues, the most glaring being Astra’s claim to use IC Markets as their broker. This was a major red flag because MetaQuotes, the company behind MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5), had stopped allowing brokers to offer their platforms to unlicensed prop firms. This policy change was part of a broader crackdown on unauthorized use of MT4 and MT5, especially in unregulated prop trading setups.
Salman signed up for a demo account with IC Markets and found that Astra was simply providing regular demo accounts—accounts that anyone could create directly with IC Markets. Astra falsely presented these demo accounts as proprietary, adding more suspicion to their operations. MetaQuotes’ restriction on MT4/MT5 usage by unlicensed firms means that reputable brokers like IC Markets cannot provide services to such firms, casting further doubt on Astra’s credibility.
The Platform and Payment Issues
Beyond the broker situation, Salman’s investigation revealed that Astra’s trading platform seemed to be a free or cracked version of Tradelocker. Additionally, payment processing was handled by Whop, a third-party platform that likely had no idea they were facilitating payments for this scam. The supposed “billionaire” behind Astra only existed through a poorly maintained X account, posting threats and promotions with no real identity tied to the firm.
Quick Collapse
More traders and influencers joined the conversation as Salman’s revelations gained traction. Notable figures like @KDTrader1999, who had previously raised concerns about Astra, chimed in to warn others about the firm. The backlash was too much for Astra Capital Funding to handle, and within just 36 hours of the Twitter thread going viral, they had shut down.
None of the brokers Astra claimed to partner with—IC Markets, Darwinex, or Pepperstone—have confirmed any formal relationships with the firm.
Astra Capital Funding’s rapid collapse is a strong reminder for traders to always research thoroughly before investing in prop firms.
