The structural roadmap.
Richard Wyckoff watched the markets in the early 1900s and noticed that big players always behave the same way: they don't buy a position all at once, they accumulate it slowly inside a sideways range. Then they mark it up. Then they distribute it back out at the top. Then they mark it down. The cycle repeats. A century later, this still describes how every market actually moves — including crypto.
The four-act play
- 1. Accumulation — sideways range at the bottom. Smart money buys quietly while retail sells in panic.
- 2. Markup — the rally. Retail finally piles in.
- 3. Distribution — sideways range at the top. Smart money sells to retail FOMO.
- 4. Markdown — the crash. Retail holds bags down.
Phases A-E describe what happens inside each of those sideways ranges — the structural moves that build the cause for the next big trend.
The five phases
Phase A — Stopping the prior trend
The downtrend (or uptrend) is exhausting itself. Climax + automatic reaction + secondary test.
Phase A is where the prior trend ends. In an accumulation: the SC stops the downtrend, the AR sets the upper bound, the ST confirms the low. The trading range is being established.
Phase B — Building the cause
Price ranges sideways while smart money quietly accumulates (or distributes).
The longest and most boring phase. Price chops sideways inside the trading range. Smart money is acquiring positions without moving the price too much. The longer this phase lasts, the bigger the eventual move.
Phase C — The test
Spring (or upthrust) — the engineered shakeout before the real move.
The most actionable phase. Price violates the range support (Spring) or resistance (Upthrust) to trigger stops and weak-handed positions. After the shakeout, the real direction reveals itself.
Phase D — The trend begins
SOS / SOW prints. Markup or markdown is now underway.
Phase D is the obvious-in-hindsight move. Volume picks up, the range breaks decisively, and the new trend establishes itself. The LPS / LPSY usually offers the cleanest pullback entry.
Phase E — The trend continues
The new trend extends. Price moves toward its projected target.
Phase E is just trend continuation. Price marches toward the breakout/breakdown target derived from the height of the trading range. New ranges often form at the next major level — and the cycle repeats.
Accumulation events (at the bottom of a downtrend)
These print in roughly the order shown — each is a signpost in the process of a market base forming.
Selling Climax
A capitulation candle — heavy volume selling that often marks a temporary bottom.
After a sustained downtrend, the SC is the moment retail panic-sells and smart money steps in. Volume is unusually high, the candle range is wide, and price often closes well above the low. The SC by itself is not a bottom — it's the start of the basing process.
Automatic Rally
The bounce that follows a Selling Climax — short covering, not real demand yet.
After the SC, sellers exhaust themselves and price snaps back up. The AR sets the upper boundary of the trading range that's about to form. It's not yet a real markup — most of the buying is short-covering and bargain-hunting.
Secondary Test
A retest of the SC low — read for whether sellers appear exhausted.
Price drifts back down to test the SC low. If volume is lower this time and price holds, the read is that the bottom may be holding. If volume is heavier and price breaks through, the downtrend may continue. Educational reads — not directives.
Spring
A fake breakdown below the range — triggers stops, then reverses up.
See the manipulation explainer for "spring" — this is the same event from the Wyckoff structural side. A Spring marks the end of the accumulation phase and the beginning of the markup phase.
Sign of Strength
A high-volume bullish bar that breaks above the range with conviction.
After a Spring or test, the SOS is the confirmation that buyers are in control. Wide range up bar, above-average volume, closing near the high. This is when the markup phase officially begins.
Last Point of Support
The pullback after an SOS that holds support — last entry zone before the markup.
After the SOS, price typically pulls back to retest. If it holds at a higher low than the previous support, that's the LPS — and it's often the last good entry before sustained upward movement.
Distribution events (at the top of an uptrend)
Mirror image of the accumulation phase. Same sequence, opposite outcome.
Preliminary Supply
First sign that an uptrend is losing steam — early supply hits the market.
Comes before the BC. The first time during a markup that selling pressure shows up meaningfully — often a sharp red bar with above-average volume. Doesn't end the trend by itself, but signals distribution is beginning.
Buying Climax
Capitulation buying at the end of an uptrend — smart money distribution begins here.
The opposite of the SC. After a long markup, retail FOMO peaks, volume explodes, and price often closes well off the high. Smart money is selling into that buying. Marks the start of distribution.
Upthrust
A fake breakout above the distribution range — traps breakout buyers.
See the manipulation explainer for "upthrust." This is the structural mirror of the Spring, and it marks the end of the distribution phase before the markdown begins.
Upthrust After Distribution
A particularly nasty upthrust late in the distribution — final flush before the drop.
The UTAD is an upthrust that happens after distribution is well-developed. Often comes with even more conviction than a regular UT — and the markdown that follows is usually faster and steeper.
Sign of Weakness
A high-volume bearish bar that breaks below distribution support — markdown begins.
Mirror of the SOS. Wide bearish range, heavy volume, closing near the low. Confirms that distribution is complete and the markdown phase is starting.
Last Point of Supply
Weak rally after an SOW — the final lower-high before sustained downside.
After the SOW, price often rallies on light volume and stalls below the prior support (now resistance). That stall is the LPSY — the last entry zone for shorts before the markdown picks up.
How the CryptoEdge engine uses this
Every coin you load on the market page is auto-classified into a Wyckoff phase based on its current trading range, the events that have printed, volume behavior, and the position of the latest bar. The chart overlays every detected event and the projected breakout/breakdown targets are derived from the height of the active range.
See it on a live chart →