5 Smart Money Concept Terms Every Trader Should Know (2024)

The approach employed in trading the capital that is under the control of institutional investors, central banks, and other experts or financial institutions is referred to as “smart money concept.”

5 Smart Money Concept Terms Every Trader Should Know (1)

It is managed by expert investors who can foresee market trends and make the most of the profits.

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Smart money was originally a gambling term, which refers to gamblers that have extensive knowledge of the activity that they wager on or have insider information that the common public is not able to access.

Institutional Smart Money trading is superior to any retail trading strategies on many levels. This does not mean retail trading strategies do not work at all. It just means Institutional Trading is more powerful and more accurate than anything the retail market offers.

Smart Money naturally has more access to knowledge and resources than retail traders or “Dumb Money” at their disposal. Tracking smart money investments will give you the true narrative and what to expect of price in the markets.

Who Discovered SMC?

Smart money concepts were invented and created by David J. Crouch – Founder and Owner – of Smart Money Concepts, Inc.

What Are Smart Money Concept Terms?

Smart money concept terms are usual terms used in moving the financial markets with size and force when it is controlled by central banks. It then becomes a joint force of large amounts of money and a good strategy where those investors ride on the success of smart money.

The most common terms used in smart money concepts are;

  • BMS
  • CHOCH
  • SMS
  • ORDER BLOCKS
  • FAIR VALUE GAP

BMS

BMS – BREAK OF MARKET STRUCTURE denotes that the market is giving you its first indication that it is about to weaken or turn against you. When the price makes a new lower low and lower high, the structure is broken in this way: You have a lower high and lower low in this instance, which is your first indication that the market is ready to reverse lower. Although there is no assurance, the market is giving you a hint that “hey, there is a break in structure, the price might perhaps revert lower”

Every trader should normally trade in the direction of the Higher Time Frame BMS when this occurs when the price closes above/below a swing high/low.

There will always be the emergence of a new consolidation after the BMS, known as the RH.

CHOCH

A “CHOCH” is just a short acronym for “CHANGE IN CHARACTER” which is an initial shift in order flow that can sometimes signal a short- or even long-term price reversal for an asset, equity, or currency pair. Hours are generally considered a reversal pattern that SMC traders use on the higher-time frames for market direction and on the lower time frames to start looking for trades on the 1-minute chart.

Most SMC traders like to use ChoChs on all of the timeframes to get a sense of market direction and to start looking for intraday reversals or reactions to 15m POls (points of interest).

To use a ChoCh, you simply just need to look for a shift in order flow (the last level of demand or supply failing) on the timeframes that you trade.

It should be noted that ChoChs should only be used as a confluence and shouldn’t be something you rely on solely for getting market direction, or looking for confirmations on the lower time frames.

SMS

SMS -is a short form for SHIFT OF MARKET STRUCTURE which is a structural market change that is broadly defined as a shift or change in the way in which a market or economy functionsor operates.

When people are buying, going long, you do see a strong parabolic move higher. Now, at what point should you be alert that, “Hey, this trend is about to reverse?”

We are looking for a shift of market structure, what you are looking for is a lower high and a lower low. At this point, you have a lower high, and when the price breaks below the area of support, you have a lower low: This tells you that this trend could be weakening. The trend could reverse, and you want to be careful down there.

ORDER BLOCKS

Order blocks are collections of orders from major banks and institutions that trade foreign exchange on the financial market. To increase the likelihood of profit, the big banks split a single order into a number of blocks rather than just opening a buy/sell order. In trading, these order groups are known as “order blocks.” The majority of currency pairs are successful for the order block trading method. Nevertheless, it is critical to remember that the financial market is incredibly unpredictable. Stop losses are used by traders because we anticipate the price. No trading system can guarantee a 100% profit.

FAIR VALUE GAP

Fair Value Gaps are most commonly used amongst price action traders and are defined as instances in which there are inefficiencies, or imbalances, in the market. These “imbalances” simply suggest that buying and selling are not equal. Fair value gaps are a very useful concept in price action trading, as they provide a trader with information about where a lot of orders were injected, creating this inefficiency in the market. This inefficiency can become a magnet for price in the future to resolve it, as there are many resting orders. A trader can use this information to target a fair value gap or to look for a potential entry for a long or short, making it a good POI.

In Conclusion

The smart money concept is believed to have a greater chance of success as institutional investors have better investment strategies that differ from those of retail investors. The bank-level trading strategy is a one-of-a-kind Smart Money Concept that combines highly accurate forecasting with cutting-edge trading indicators and tools.

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5 Smart Money Concept Terms Every Trader Should Know (2024)

FAQs

What is the smart money concept trading terms? ›

Smart money concepts trading involves looking at order blocks, which is a more refined version of supply and demand, breaker blocks, mitigation blocks, flip zones, fair value gaps and liquidity grabs. These terms replace support and resistance, reversals and volume.

What is the smart money concept for trading? ›

Smart money is capital placed in the market by institutional investors, market mavens, central banks, funds, and other financial professionals. Smart money also refers to the force that influences and moves financial markets, often led by the actions of central banks.

What is the SMC strategy in trading? ›

The SMC forex strategy involves identifying patterns and signals that indicate the involvement of institutional investors. This includes analysing order blocks, liquidity zones, breaks of structure (BOS), changes of character (ChoCH), and fair value gaps.

Does SMC really work? ›

SMC is not going to give you a special advantage over regular retail price action traders. But if the flaws we went over do not put you off, and you find SMC intuitive and appealing, there is no reason not to give it a try. Its proponents report that it brings them consistent results when they apply it properly.

Is Smart money concept trading profitable? ›

While the smart money concept can be a valuable tool for traders, it is important to remember that it is just one piece of the puzzle. Successful trading requires a combination of different strategies, risk management techniques, and a deep understanding of the market.

What is the best time frame for SMC trading? ›

The most suitable timeframe for SMC trading strategy might vary due to several factors, but the general opinion from several SMC traders is that “The SMC trading strategy works better when employing a longer time frame (4 hours) for technical analysis and a shorter time frame (15 minutes) to get your entry points, this ...

Who is the father of smart money concepts? ›

So who invented SMC? Smart Money Concepts can be traced back to The Inner Circle Trader (ICT), a program developed by a trader named Michael J. Huddleston. ICT provides a mix of free resources and paid Forex mentorship opportunities.

What is master smart money concepts? ›

Increasing too fast will cause “Lack of liquidity” – Smart money will push market go down with signals that traders call “Over bought”. They manipulate market to go lower strongly to attract more sellers who are the liquidity for them to buy at a cheap price.

What is the smart money dumb money indicator? ›

In general, smart money indicators are used to assess institutional investors' stock buying behavior for insight into their actions and approaches. On the other hand, “dumb money” indicators – retail buying, for example – uncover the movements of investors who are less knowledgeable or more emotionally driven.

What is the best SMC indicator? ›

Indicators, Strategies and Libraries
  • Liquidity Finder Library. ...
  • Liquidity Grabs | Flux Charts. ...
  • Fibonacci Inversion Fair Value Gaps | Flux Charts. ...
  • SMC Fake Zones + InsideBar. ...
  • Inversion Fair Value Gaps | Flux Charts. ...
  • Order Blocks | Flux Charts. ...
  • Breaker Blocks | Flux Charts. ...
  • Smart money concept. quangcttn Updated Mar 20.

What strategy do most traders use? ›

Top 10 Most Popular Trading Strategies
  • Trading Strategy #1 – Buy and Hold. ...
  • Trading Strategy #2 – Value Investing. ...
  • Trading Strategy #3 – Swing Trading. ...
  • Trading Strategy #4 – Momentum Trading. ...
  • Trading Strategy #5 – Scalping. ...
  • Trading Strategy #6 – Day Trading. ...
  • Trading Strategy #7 – Positions Trading.
Feb 23, 2023

Is SMC better than retail trading? ›

No different from regular retail trading

In truth, SMC traders are trading exactly like their fellow retail traders.

Is SMC trading profitable? ›

The SMC trading strategy is a complex strategy that requires a good understanding of the market. However, it can be a profitable strategy for those who are willing to put in the time and effort to learn it.

What is the bank level trading strategy? ›

The Bank Trader Strategy uses similar processes to identify daily and weekly trade levels that major banks and institutions use to determine potential entries, targets, and exits levels. These trade levels are calculated at the open of the each day and automatically plotted on a MetaTrader 4.0 chart.

How do you trade like a pro? ›

  1. 1: Always Use a Trading Plan.
  2. 2: Treat Trading Like a Business.
  3. 3: Use Technology.
  4. 4: Protect Your Trading Capital.
  5. 5: Study the Markets.
  6. 6: Risk Only What You Can Afford.
  7. 7: Develop a Trading Methodology.
  8. 8: Always Use a Stop Loss.

What is the example of smart money? ›

Smart Money Concept Explained

Banks and funds are two examples of such financial entities. Originally, this term referred to gamblers with vast knowledge regarding the activity they wagered on or had insider knowledge inaccessible to the common public.

How does smart trader work? ›

SmartTrader allows you to connect from virtually all major MetaTrader4 (MT4) and MetaTrader5 (MT5) brokers, including IG, Forex.com, AvaTrade, and FXCM. This gives you access to a wider range of trading opportunities, and the ability to choose brokers that offer the best features for your trading style.

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