Rebranded from Monero Funding — Hidden Rules, Manual Payout Reversals, and Fake Review Removals
Status
HIGH Risk
Prop Firm
SharkFunded
Reported
4/4/2026
SharkFunded (sharkfunded.com) is a Saint Lucia-registered prop firm launched in 2025, reportedly led by Ibrahim Shaikh. The firm was previously known as Monero Funding — a rebrand that Trustpilot reviews and the firm's own support responses confirm. Rebranding prop firms is a pattern we track closely, because it's how firms with damaged reputations reset their review profiles.
The firm offers 1-step, 2-step, and instant funding challenges on MetaTrader 5, with account sizes from $5K to $100K and claims of "True Daily Payouts with No Consistency Rules."
The reality reported by traders is different.
Hidden Rules Enforced at Payout
Multiple traders document the same pattern: pass the challenge, hit profit targets on the funded account, request a payout — and get breached for rules that don't appear on the website.
Specific documented cases:
Manual Payout Reversals
One trader documented a payout being accepted by the system, then manually reversed 7 hours later with a "rule breach" citation. Their argument: if a rule was actually violated, the automated system would have rejected the request at submission. A manual reversal hours later suggests human intervention to avoid paying profitable traders.
Rebrand from Monero Funding
The sharkfunded.com domain is registered on Trustpilot under "Monero Funding." The firm's support team signs responses as "Team SharkFunded (Monero Funding)." The rebrand split the firm's review history across two Trustpilot profiles — sharkfunded.co (3.7/5, 182 reviews) and sharkfunded.com/Monero Funding (51% one-star reviews). Trustpilot has removed fake reviews from both profiles.
Our Assessment
The rebrand alone is a yellow flag. Combined with hidden rule enforcement, manual payout reversals, and fake review removals across two Trustpilot profiles, the pattern is clear: SharkFunded markets aggressively with "daily payouts" and "no consistency rules" to attract traders, then uses unpublished rules to deny payouts to profitable ones. The $3.5M total payout claim is unverifiable and low for a firm selling $59 challenges at volume.
Trustpilot (sharkfunded.co): 3.7/5 from 182 reviews. Trustpilot has removed fake reviews from this profile.
Trustpilot (sharkfunded.com / "Monero Funding"): 51% one-star reviews. Trustpilot has also removed fake reviews from this profile. The dual-profile setup splits and dilutes the firm's negative review history.
Rebrand Confirmation: Trustpilot responses signed "Team SharkFunded (Monero Funding)" confirm the firm operates under both names on the same domain.
Hidden Rule Reports: Multiple Trustpilot reviewers document breaches for "scalping" and "tick scalping and overtrading" — rules not published on the SharkFunded website at the time of the trades.
Manual Reversal: One trader documented a payout accepted by the system, then reversed manually 7 hours later with a retroactive breach citation.
Registration: Saint Lucia, with UK-facing marketing. No financial regulatory oversight.
Leadership: Ibrahim Shaikh referenced as CEO in Trustpilot reviews.
PropFirmsCompared: Review titled "Read This Before You Sign Up in 2026" notes mixed sentiment and advises caution for a firm this new.
Note: Some traders do report successful payouts and positive support experiences. The firm claims $3.5M+ total distributed. This entry reflects documented patterns as of April 2026.