Wyckoff: accumulation

Lesson 17 of 39 in the course “Crypto”. Free, with animations and a quiz.

The method of Wyckoff, an early 20th-century trader, explains how big players build a position. Phase A: a panic drop and the Selling Climax (SC), the peak of the selling. By this logic, big players buy from panicking sellers at the bottom.

Next comes the AR (automatic rally), the automatic bounce after the SC. Its top and the SC low frame the range. Price gets stuck inside: that is accumulation, the position is built quietly, without a visible rally.

Spring: a fake poke below the range. Weak hands, meaning nervous small traders, sell out of fear, and strong hands buy. Price quickly returns into the range.

SOS (Sign of Strength): a confident move up out of the range. Buyers now clearly outnumber sellers, and price no longer stays inside the box.

LPS (Last Point of Support): a retest, meaning price comes back down to the top of the range. If the level holds, the markup starts, the rising phase. The pattern helps you read the chart, but it does not always play out.

Check yourself

1. What is the Selling Climax (SC)?
   Correct answer: A panic low where big players buy. SC is the peak of the selling. The crowd sells in panic, and per Wyckoff big players buy at that moment. A fake poke below the range is a Spring.
2. A Spring is...
   Correct answer: A fake poke below the range. A Spring shakes weak hands out below the range, then price quickly returns. The move up out is the SOS, the first bounce is the AR.
3. Per Wyckoff, what comes after accumulation?
   Correct answer: Markup: the rising phase. After the SOS and the retest (LPS), the markup begins. But the pattern is not a law: sometimes accumulation breaks down instead.

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