Have you seen young traders on social media tearing into each other over some strategy they swear by? Yep, that’s ICT for you.
You’ve probably come across the term ICT Concepts while scrolling through TikTok, YouTube, or trading Discords. There’s a good chance you’ve seen someone call out a “Fair Value Gap,” mark up a chart like it’s sacred geometry, and confidently claim the market is about to melt up or crash down, because “smart money” said so.
ICT, short for Inner Circle Trader, is a trading methodology created by Michael J. Huddleston. It’s exploded in popularity among younger, tech-savvy traders over the last few years. Think less RSI and MACD, more liquidity grabs, imbalances, order blocks, and kill zones.
But beneath all the jargon, here is the real question: Is ICT a genuine edge in trading, or just a cleverly wrapped fad?
ICT isn’t just a trading system, it’s more of a blueprint that attempts to decode how institutional players move the markets.
The idea is this. Markets don’t move randomly. Instead, big players (banks, hedge funds, algorithms) engineer price movements to hunt liquidity, induce emotion, and fill large orders. ICT teaches you to identify those footprints and trade in sync with “smart money.”
Core ICT Concepts
Here’s what ICT traders focus on:
Liquidity Runs
- Stop losses are seen as targets, not protection.
- Price often “wicks” into highs/lows to collect liquidity before moving in the opposite direction.
Fair Value Gaps (FVGs)
- Gaps created when price moves too fast.
- Viewed as inefficiencies that often get “rebalanced” – meaning price returns to these zones before continuing.
Order Blocks
- Areas where institutions supposedly entered positions.
- These become zones of interest for future trades or reversals.
SMT Divergence
- A form of intermarket analysis comparing correlated assets (e.g. S&P vs Nasdaq) to spot manipulation or hidden strength/weakness.
Time-Based Logic
- Price action is filtered through time windows (e.g., London Kill Zone, New York Open).
- Traders expect clean, high-probability moves only during specific sessions.
The ICT Win Rate
Despite its precision and complexity, ICT isn’t a high-win-rate system – at least not for most traders starting out.
In fact, ICT strategies often hover around a 35% win rate, especially when applied mechanically or by newer traders. But the key is that many setups aim for 3:1 or 4:1 reward-to-risk ratios, so even with more losers than winners, the maths works out, if you’re disciplined.
Think of it like this, out of 10 trades, you win 3. But each win nets you 4R, and each loss costs you 1R. You’re still up 3R overall.
That sounds great on paper. But in practice, it’s emotionally brutal. You may sit through five losing trades in a row, and without strong conviction in the system, that’s enough to spiral into doubt or overtrading.
The Criticisms
Here’s where ICT takes real heat, and not without reason.
It’s Overcomplicated
Critics argue that ICT overcomplicates simple price action, layering unnecessary complexity onto what could be simpler setups.
Some believe the concepts are “just supply and demand in disguise” with fancier names.
No Verified Track Record
Despite the content and mentorships, there’s no publicly verified track record from Huddleston himself.
This raises eyebrows, especially given the bold claims of institutional knowledge.
Prone to Misuse by Newbies
Many traders fail with ICT because it’s easy to mark up charts after the fact, but extremely difficult to execute in real-time.
The learning curve is steep, and without structure, it becomes a rabbit hole of analysis paralysis.
Cultish Fanbase
Some followers treat ICT almost like a belief system, aggressively dismissing other strategies.
This turns off experienced traders who value flexibility over ideology.
But the positives are real too…
ICT has helped many traders build genuine skill in understanding how price moves. For those who:
- Journal, backtest, and apply it with patience.
- Use FVGs, liquidity, and structure as a confluence, not gospel.
- Stick to strict risk management.
ICT can offer an edge. Not because it’s magic, but because it forces you to understand how markets work beneath the surface.
And unlike signal-following or indicator-chasing, ICT builds confidence by giving context and narrative to price.
So, Is It a Fad or a Foundation?
ICT is both!
It’s a fad in the sense that it’s hyped online, often oversimplified or misunderstood, and turned into clickbait by content creators who don’t fully grasp it.
But it’s also a solid foundation for traders who put in the work. It’s not beginner-friendly, and it’s not plug-and-play, but neither is real trading. ICT gives you a lens to view the market like a predator, not prey.
ICT is not a holy grail, not total BS – just another complex system that only works if you do.