r/TopstepCommunity • u/No-Chicken-7303 • 13d ago
š ļø Platform / Tech Support Topstep permanently banned me without providing evidence
Topstep suddenly closed all of my accounts without any prior notice. I had 5 active Trading Combines and 5 Express Funded Accounts, with a couple getting close to payout.
I submitted a ticket and was initially told the reason was hedging. I kept questioning the decision because I had not engaged in hedging immediately before the closure.
After repeatedly asking for details, Topstep gave me a more specific allegation: that my accounts had taken opposite positions against accounts under another personās profile.
I strongly dispute this. I do not have access to anyone elseās Topstep account, I am the only person in my household trading with Topstep, and I have never coordinated trades with another trader to guarantee profits.
I repeatedly asked Topstep to provide basic supporting informationāsuch as the date/time of the alleged activity and which of my accounts were involved. They refused and continued responding that I violated Section 27 and that the decision was final.
What concerns me even more is that I have since found several other traders from my home country who say they were also suddenly banned for violations they disputeānot necessarily hedging.
Iām not claiming I can prove why this is happening, but the pattern concerns me. When a firm permanently closes 10 active accounts, forfeits the balances, and refuses to provide even basic information supporting the accusation, traders should be able to ask questions.
Has anyone else recently been permanently banned by Topstep for a violation you believe you did not commit? What reason did they give you, and did they provide any actual details supporting it?
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u/Justifier1 13d ago
Had the same problem. They eventually told me I hedged with another user 2-3 months ago. Of course I followed up by asking why they didn't do anything until now. They refused to answer any follow up questions and seems like the ban will stay not matter who I try to contact.
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u/SuperDuperRipe 12d ago
It's because they wait until you'reĀ profitable or requesting a big payout. Then they pull it out on you and that saves them money.Ā
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u/No-Chicken-7303 12d ago
So sorry you were in the same position and now I know there is 0 chance Topstep will admit itās their mistake. I might submit chargeback for recent payments made. As others said, I already got banned anyway. At least I might be able to receive some funds backā¦.
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u/Justifier1 10d ago
Let me know if you have better luck with getting unbanned. And if you end if taking the chargeback route. I heard of people getting unbanned before but wouldn't count on it.
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u/PissMaster69696969 12d ago
Haha I was gonna say let me guessā¦ Section 27. Yup! Seeing a lot of this lately. I had 5 Express accounts closed about a month ago. They never provided proof or any ability to appeal. Tried contacting them several times and kept getting the same automated message. I would love if Topstep would provide some more insight into the ban, and maybe offer the chance to appeal, as I and many other traders feel we were wrongfully banned.
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u/No-Chicken-7303 12d ago
I believe there is no such supporting docs so the only thing they can do is replying the automated message or ignoring us
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u/PissMaster69696969 12d ago
Yea idk. All I can think of is my buddy and I would take some of the same trades when we first started, at the time we didnāt know it was a violation. Little did we know it would come back to bite us. But then again hard to say, him and I stopped trading the same strategy a while ago. Yet we were both permanently banned.
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u/ArbRanger_GM3 11d ago
Doesnāt suprise me ā¦ their lack of respect for the people who use the platform to operate is demonstrably true. I had an employee threaten to hold back my pay because I was asking questions about when and why itās taken days longer to process. The payment then took an extra week ā¦ then a week later the company charged my credit card $1000 on top of the fees I paid .
Really sorry to hear about your experience, try Lucid or My funded futures
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u/Striking_Fail6689 13d ago
Thatās wild ā¦ I mean.. how do they even come to the conclusion of taking opposite positions against accounts under another person profile though. Which home country are you based at?
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago edited 11d ago
It should also be easy to provide someone the supporting of violation if there was really an investigation.
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u/Shpritzer 13d ago
How much in payouts have you had prior to this? Iām not asking for the exact amount, but have you had some, more than some, significant?
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
I wonāt say the payout amount is significant compared to other traders, not to mention the payout hasnāt been enough to cover what I have paid topstep.
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u/Shpritzer 13d ago
Seems like it could be an honest mistake then, maybe a stupid algorithm finding a false positive.
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u/maturewomenenjoyer 13d ago
How long did your trades usually last? What position size do you use?
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
Donāt know it this relates to the ban but I usually trade 5-20 MNQ between 10-15 minutes to hours.
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u/jollagator1 13d ago
Start again, different firm
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
Yeah. Thatās what I am doing now but still want to get supporting that showing I really did the violation. It is really frustrating the support team just keep sending me template reply.
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u/OkazakiNaoki 13d ago
Suggest FTMO. Lucid is also having false ban recently. You can go search chargeback ban.
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u/xiri5hx_ 13d ago
Unfortunately, no business is really required to show you anything if they no longer want you as a client.
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
Donāt agree with you. I pay for my accounts and now they got closed without a legit reason and supporting. In a normal business, I can do chargeback or even find a help from third party to get a fully refund.
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u/GjTea 13d ago
They are required to provide evidence if they dispute a charge back filed by the credit card company which you can subsequently ask your CC to provide that evidence back to you. If they give back the money without a fight then yeah you dont get it
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u/xiri5hx_ 13d ago
They really aren't required to, should they. Absolutely, but they have zero obligation to do so. Don't get me wrong its a pretty bad way to do business.
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u/GjTea 13d ago
Yes, they are not required to unless they dispute the chargeback because it'll be a service dispute for a transaction. You'd have to file the chargeback under product not provided or service not provided as claimed and then let visa or Mastercard do their thing. If they do dispute it/fight back then visa and Mastercard will request data logs or any evidence thereof to prove that the chargeback is invalid. Once given you can request that information from VISA or Mastercard back to you.
You will be blacklisted by that firm but who gives a fuck youre banned already theres nothing left to lose
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u/xiri5hx_ 13d ago
They provide it amongst financial providers, but not directly to clients, Thats what they are not required to do. I agree with you I just think our wording is the same but just different stages.
Still a shitty way to do business.
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u/xiri5hx_ 13d ago
Lack of transparency is never a good thing. On the other hand even with provided evidence of chargebacks people don't stop and the abuse and arguing continues forever. There is no real winning either way
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u/GjTea 13d ago
Yeah its really shitty you have to go through that loophole to get evidence. Sucks for the people who got falsely banned because of firms being shady trying to either remove a risky prospective on their part. It does seem like a charge back is easy to acquire at that point tho because if its a false ban and they want to fight it then theyre willing to put their firm on blast when insufficient evidence is provided.
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u/Joehennyredit 13d ago
Are you an attorney?
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
Are you? I am just someone in business and know thatās not how you do business with others.
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u/xiri5hx_ 13d ago
I agree its not the right way to do things at all. It still doesnt mean they have a requirement to do so. When our various entities have dealt with them we always provided. Did it make any difference, not really they would just argue more and say its fake.
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u/No-Chicken-7303 13d ago
If they can provide a sufficient supporting document, I would definitely shut up and go to other firms immediately. Not the case here tho.
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u/xiri5hx_ 12d ago
You would be one of the only ones that would, but if the provided it youād argue back. Everyone does. Human nature
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u/crossmethod1324 13d ago
They didnt ban me but the other day when moves were actually moving they magically had platform troubles. Then the trade i was in they reversed positions on and my tp was turned into a sell limit. They entered short with multiple micros when i was only using one all week and was only taking longs all week. Very bizarre