A big trader who shows their full size on the order book gives everyone else information. So many use iceberg orders, which only show a small visible quantity and refill automatically after each fill.

How to spot one

• A price keeps trading far more volume than the visible size on the book.

• The visible size refreshes again and again at the same price.

• Price stalls while volume at that price keeps climbing.

Why it matters

An iceberg tells you a large player wants to buy or sell at that exact price and is willing to wait for it. That level becomes important. If the iceberg is eventually fully filled and price moves through, the barrier is gone and the move can run.

Trading around icebergs

• Fade toward an iceberg only if it lines up with a level from your plan.

• Watch for the refills to stop. When the hidden size is finished, the level often breaks.

• Treat icebergs as information, not guarantees. They can be cancelled at any time.

In HOC Charts

The Big Trades indicator shows large prints as bubbles on the chart, and repeated large fills at one price are a strong hint of an iceberg working there.