Educational content — not financial advice. Past behaviour of a setup does not guarantee future results. Practise in demo first and never risk more than your plan allows.
Institutional logic
The Point of Control (POC) is the price where the most volume traded in the prior session. Rejections at the POC suggest participants are defending that high-volume value area.
Setup rules
- Plot a fixed-range or session Volume Profile on the previous trading day’s session.
- Identify the previous day POC (vPOC) and the Value Area High/Low (VAH/VAL).
- Allow price in the active session to retest the vPOC on declining relative volume.
- Observe delta absorption: heavy aggressive order flow executing at the level without price progressing further (passive limit orders absorbing it).
Entry trigger
Market order on a 5-minute engulfing bar that closes back away from the POC toward the Value Area interior.
Stop loss
1.5 ATR beyond the POC level.
Take profit
Opposite Value Area boundary (VAH if buying at VAL; VAL if selling at VAH). Target R:R 1:2.5+.