Market Manipulation in Crypto: How Scams, Pump-and-Dumps, and Fake News Trick Investors
When you hear about a crypto coin jumping 500% in a day, it’s rarely because of real demand—it’s usually market manipulation, the deliberate act of distorting prices to trick traders into buying or selling. Also known as price manipulation, it’s one of the most common ways people lose money in crypto. Unlike stock markets, crypto has little oversight, making it easy for bad actors to control small coins with just a few wallets and a Twitter thread.
Pump and dump, a scheme where a group buys a low-volume coin, pushes the price up with false hype, then sells off before the crash shows up in almost every fake airdrop and meme coin you see. Look at Neiro (NEIRO), a token with no team, no tech, and zero utility, or MOO DENG (MOODENG), a viral hippo meme coin with $6M daily volume but no real buyers. Both were pushed hard by influencers and bots, then collapsed. Wash trading, faking volume by buying and selling to yourself is used by shady exchanges like FDEX, a scam site pretending to be FedEx to look legitimate. These aren’t anomalies—they’re the norm in low-cap crypto.
Then there’s fake news crypto, fabricated stories designed to trigger FOMO. You’ll see headlines like "Elon buys this coin!" or "Binance listing soon!"—but when you check, it’s a bot-generated post from a fake account. Projects like NFTP, a non-existent airdrop on Heco Chain or AFEN Marketplace, a fake airdrop designed to steal wallet keys rely entirely on this. They don’t need to be real—they just need to look real long enough to get your money.
And it’s not just coins. Even WBTC, a trusted Bitcoin wrapper on Ethereum, can be abused—by manipulating its supply or spreading rumors about custody risks. The tools are different, but the goal is the same: make you act before you think. You’ll find posts here that expose these tricks, from fake IDOs like Swaperry, a non-existent token promotion, to tokens with zero supply like OpenKaito (SN5), a coin with impossible price data. These aren’t just weird cases—they’re textbook examples of how manipulation works. If you’ve ever wondered why a coin you bought dropped 90% overnight, the answer is almost always here. This collection cuts through the noise. No fluff. Just proof.
Order Book Manipulation Tactics in Crypto and Financial Markets
Order book manipulation uses fake orders to trick traders into making bad moves. Spoofing, layering, and iceberg orders are common tactics in crypto markets that cost retail traders millions. Learn how to spot them and protect yourself.