So many traders — and even those just aware of the currency market — feel that the FOREX market is somehow "rigged", or filled with 'stop hunters, etc.

Though none of that is true, there are some situations traders run into that sure make it appear that there is nefarious behavior going on that causes them to constantly loose money.

What's really happening is that the big institutional traders that dominate this $6.6 Trillion Dollar a day market have enough heat behind them that when they are conducting business on a huge macro economic scale for the benefit of their clients, the unwitting retail trader gets swept away.

Of note is that to this post, I have a companion video of the same title: Pin Bar Reveals FOREX Lies that puts all of this together from a different view point.

If you've come from watching that video, then press on here. However, if this is your starting point, I might suggest that you read through this before watching the video. Or, if you want, you can skip to the bottom of this post to watch that video now.

It's not that the institutional traders are 'hunting' retail stops, but rather that they are hunting for prices that get them the best deal for their client. And remember, it's these clients who are having the institution work the market to get the best price for them in what could be a $6 Billion Dollar order for some product.

The entire function of the currency market is to facilitate trade between different economies — not provide you, the retail trader, with easy money.... So, when you get hit with something like a pin bar, don't blame the institutional trader for hunting your stop; they could really give a shit about your stop....

Take a look at the following screen shot of a massive pin bar event — I present 2 of the same shot: one that's tough to really see the 137 pip, but is given to prove no alteration to the shot was made, followed by the same chart shot with two big dots representing the top and bottom to make it easier to identify.

Note that this 137 pip pin bar occurred in 1 — as in one — minute. I show it on a 5 minute chart to give the move more context, but it formed in just 1 minute....

05/09/21 1700 US ET GBP/USD 1 min 137 Pip Pin Bar

05/09/21 1700 US ET GBP/USD 1 min 137 Pip Pin Bar - with markers

Ouch! Yeah, no shit "ouch...."

I was, unfortunately, on the other side of this, and got caught. Why, you might ask, was I on the wrong side, and why did I not exit? I was on the wrong side because I was trading up on the daily chart (which I normally never do) so my perspective of the whole situation was different, and I didn't get out because I was in a long term, carry trade and was watching a movie at 5:00pm that Sunday evening. Both stupid reasons to "get caught".

Regardless of all of that, I wasn't running around flapping my arms in anger or frustration. I enjoyed the movie, and had faith in my analysis. When you enter a trade, you have to do so willing to accept a worst case possible scenario. Things like minor price retracements are all just part of the game.

A pin bar like this, however, is a whole other order of magnitude problem.

Events such as that really test your overall view of not only the market, but trading itself. The reason for this is that it's pretty obvious from a pin bar that something out of the ordinarily has occurred, something beyond even crazy price action.

And that's when, if your view is incorrect, you are prone to start mentally hyperventilating that the FOREX market is somehow "rigged", or filled with 'stop hunters, etc.

Before this type of reaction takes place, you have to make sure you not only have a clear view of trading, but also a firm understanding and acceptance of how the market really functions.

The large institutional traders who make up 85% of the $6.6 Trillion Dollar a day FOREX currency market are not in the business of fretting over what the other, much smaller, 15% of the market is doing. Even a huge retail trader with a Million Dollar account is just shit-dust in comparison to a bank trader with a client order for several Billion Dollars.

You can's say that some drunk fool walking too close to the rail road tracks, and gets hit by a passing freight train was "hunted" by that train, or the trains engineer. It's the same in the currency market.

That pin bar may take out hundreds of retail trader stops, but that's only because the retail traders didn't understand that the location of those stops was prime trading ground needed by large institutional traders fulfilling their customer orders.

And thus the answer to the question as to if evidence of FOREX market 'rigging' lies in these pin bar formations is that it absolutely is not.

Video: Pin Bar Reveals FOREX Lies