Research: The Economics of Cryptocurrency Pump and Dump Schemes

Paper by American and Israeli researchers looked at the proliferation of frauds using tactic long known by the financial markets, called ‘pump and dump’ scheme. They looked at the unofficial channels on Telegram, Discord, and other messaging app groups that sent the false informations; so called ‘pump signals’. Emergence of nearly 2000 cryptocurrencies in 2017, created the place for the known financial swindlers and other unethical players to take the advantage of unregulated markets and online exchanges. Research recorded more than 3500 ‘pump signals’, concluding that ‘pump and dump’ schemes are widespread in cryptocurrency market. This can be a strong signal for regulators to try impose the rules common in other financial markets.