Market Maker Buy/Sell Model (2023)
Also: Market Maker Model 2023, Market Maker Buy Model, Market Maker Sell Model, MM Buy Model, MM Sell Model, Algorithmic Price Delivery Model, Market Maker Accumulation Model, First Stage Accumulation, Second Stage Re-accumulation, Buy Side of the Curve, Sell Side of the Curve
Visual Context Required
This concept requires chart visuals for full understanding.
The Market Maker Buy/Sell Model (2023) is ICT's comprehensive 2023 exposition of how institutional/algorithmic price delivery orchestrates accumulation and distribution across multiple stages. This is an expansion and refinement of the 2016 Market Maker models, incorporating new nomenclature and structural concepts. MARKET MAKER BUY MODEL (bullish): Stage 1 — Original Consolidation (Accumulation): Price consolidates in a range. Smart money accumulates long positions by buying at the lows of the range (original consolidation lows). This is the foundation level; the market "cumulates" here. Stage 2 — Leave the Consolidation: Price breaks out above the consolidation, running buy-side liquidity above the range. This is the "buy side of the curve" — the upside displacement. Stage 3 — Return to Original Consolidation (First Stage Re-accumulation): Price retraces back into the original consolidation range. This is a re-accumulation opportunity — smart money adds positions on the return. This return also traps retail traders who see it as a "failed breakout." Stage 4 — Second Stage Re-accumulation (Fastest / Most Energetic Move): Price rallies again, this time more aggressively. ICT calls the second stage re-accumulation the "unicorn" — the fastest and most energetic portion of the move. This is where the largest displacement occurs. Stage 5 — Smart Money Reversal: At the extreme of the second stage move (at a premium PD array), smart money reverses position. The Balanced Price Range (an overlap of a bearish FVG/SIBI and a bullish FVG/BISI) forms at the reversal zone, trapping traders who bought the breakout. MARKET MAKER SELL MODEL (bearish): Mirror image — original consolidation at top → break below (sell side of curve) → return to consolidation → second stage redistribution (most energetic drop) → smart money reversal at discount. KEY STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS: - Original Consolidation: The initial range where accumulation/distribution begins. - Balanced Price Range (BPR): Overlapping SIBI and BISI — a zone where both bullish and bearish FVGs overlap, creating a "balanced" area. Traps both buyers and sellers. - Smart Money Reversal (SMR): The price level where institutional positioning flips direction; occurs at a higher-timeframe PD array extreme. - Buy Side / Sell Side of the Curve: Which side of the price curve smart money is currently exploiting (buy side = running sell stops below; sell side = running buy stops above). TIME INTEGRATION: - London Open kill zone: Entry for early positioning. - 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM ET: Target delivery window (New York AM session). - The 2022 entry model (structure shift + FVG) is valid within this framework.
Identification7
- Identify the original consolidation range on the relevant timeframe (4H or daily for swing trades).
- Mark the highs and lows of the consolidation — these are the accumulation/distribution levels.
- Observe price breaking out of the consolidation in one direction (above for buy model, below for sell model).
- Watch for a return back into the original consolidation range — this is the first re-accumulation / re-distribution zone.
- Within the return, use the 2022 ICT entry model (shift in market structure + FVG) to enter in the direction of the original breakout.
- Anticipate a second, more energetic move in the breakout direction (second stage — the unicorn).
- Identify the Balanced Price Range at the expected reversal zone — overlapping SIBI/BISI — as the end of the model.
Entry4
- First entry: Original consolidation lows (buy model) — limit long at consolidation range support, targeting breakout above.
- Second entry (higher probability): Return to original consolidation after the initial breakout — buy the first re-accumulation (return to consolidation range).
- Third entry (highest energy): Second stage re-accumulation — any valid ICT entry (FVG, OTE, structure shift) in the direction of the continuation move.
- Use the 2022 ICT model (shift in market structure + FVG) for precise lower-timeframe entry at each stage.
Stop3
- Below the original consolidation lows (for buy model entries at or above consolidation).
- Above the original consolidation highs (for sell model).
- Second stage entries: stop below the second re-accumulation low (buy) or above the second redistribution high (sell).
Target4
- First target: Buy-side liquidity above the original consolidation high (first breakout).
- Second target: Next HTF PD array above (for buy model) after the return to consolidation.
- Third target (unicorn): Full second stage expansion target — next significant premium array or liquidity pool.
- Smart Money Reversal target: The Balanced Price Range at the extremity of the move.
Invalidation3
- Price returns to the original consolidation and continues below it (for buy model) — the consolidation has failed as accumulation; reclassify.
- The second stage re-accumulation fails to produce a higher high than the first breakout — the model's energy is not delivering as expected.
- A Smart Money Reversal occurs before the second stage completes — early termination of the model.
Inferred Conditions (Unvalidated)
- The 'unicorn' (second stage re-accumulation/redistribution) is the highest-momentum phase and produces the most pips/handles — it is the primary hunting ground.
- The Balanced Price Range at the reversal point overlaps with the concept of a Fair Value Gap consolidation zone — knowing to expect a BPR at the extreme prevents traders from chasing late.
- Scaling in at the original consolidation and again at the return creates a pyramided position that benefits maximally from the second stage.
ICT Quotes
""When I call a original consolidation, that is where the market is cumulating.""
Timeframes
Version History5 versions
ICT 2016 Mentorship
Original Market Maker buy/sell model introduction with Wyckoff-influenced accumulation/distribution stages.
ICT YouTube 2022 Mentorship
Refinement with FVG-based entries, kill zone integration, and shift in market structure triggers.
ICT YT - 2023-11-01 - ICT Mentorship 2023 - Market Maker Models
New 2023 nomenclature: original consolidation, buy/sell side of the curve, first/second stage re-accumulation/redistribution, unicorn (second stage), Balanced Price Range, Smart Money Reversal. Explicit time integration with kill zones. Framed as the culminating lecture of the 2023 series.
18 - How Do I Engage Markets When I Don't Have An Initial Bias？.en.srt
"market maker buy model zoomed in original consolidation. First stage distribution second stage distribution down right into that discount by side balance outside efficiency rallies up. There is a inve…"
2026 LIVE APPLICATION: ICT identifies a complete market maker buy model on an intraday chart during a no-bias session. Shows original consolidation, first and second stage distribution driving into a discount BISI, then accumulation and reaccumulation in the upper half. An inversion FVG is extended forward as a reference. Demonstrates that the model applies on very small timeframes (15-second to 1-minute) during the opening range, not just on daily/weekly charts.
20 - ICT 2026 Smart Money Concepts Lecture ⧹ January 29, 2026.en.srt
"with a market maker sell model, it can go up into 3/4 of the range and not come back to the original consolidation. And that's what you saw here. And then it fails there. It never even goes back to th…"
3/4 RANGE RULE: In a market maker sell model, price can rally up to 3/4 of the range without returning to the original consolidation. This is a key rule for identifying when the sell model is complete — if price reaches 3/4 of the range and fails, it confirms the sell model and the original consolidation will not be revisited. ICT references this as previously taught in the mentorship.
Notes
No material conflict between 2016 and 2023 versions — the 2023 content is an extension and renaming, not a contradiction. The Balanced Price Range concept is new to 2023 and does not appear in the existing market-maker-manipulation-template.yaml; that file should be reviewed for potential update or cross-reference. The "Scaling In On Consolidations" model (see separate YAML) is the position-building application of this model's original consolidation and return-to-consolidation stages.
Asymmetry Notes
ICT explicitly references the 2022 model as a component: "This right here is model 2022. By side taken shift in market structure, fair value got go short." The 2023 Market Maker Models lecture is framed as the "last teaching lecture on the inner circle trader YouTube channel" — a culmination of the full curriculum. The buy model and sell model are exact mirrors; the second stage re-accumulation / redistribution (the unicorn) is the highest-energy phase. The Balanced Price Range is a 2023-introduced structural concept that did not appear prominently in 2016/2022 nomenclature.