No slump for pump and dump cryptocurrency gangs

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

sleepy corner of the crypto-economy, the value of an obscure coin called Enzyme was tumbling downwards along with its peers earlier this month — but then something unusual happened on May 15. Enzyme, also known as MLN, rocketed from 30 cents to 47 cents in just minutes and daily trading volumes exploded from around $3 million to more than $100 million, according to CoinGecko. A few hours later, it crashed back down to 35 cents.

Did you Know?

Asia’s first crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) could be launched in India’s GIFT City this year by Torus Kling Blockchain

The coin had just been «pumped and dumped», an age-old scam when traders get together and orchestrate a price hike to bag a quick profit. «In the stock market, pump and dump is illegal, which is why criminals take advantage of the less robust regulatory framework around crypto assets,» said Mircea Mihaescu of compliance outfit Coinfirm. The crypto economy has been torn to shreds in recent weeks with hundreds of billions knocked off the value of the sector and some currencies completely collapsing. The scamming industry — worth some $7.8 billion last year according to Chainalysis data — has not given up though. Scammers continue to find fertile ground on the Telegram app and Twitter, positioning themselves as benevolent heroes helping those who have lost out in the crash. The rationale preys on the cult-like nature of crypto investing, but experts say it is far from the truth. — 'Shill it on Twitter' — The May 15 call to arms came on a Telegram group called WallStreetBets — Pumps. After several messages building the hype, the group wrote: «The coin we are buying is $MLN… Shill it on Twitter to make it trending.» Twitter immediately lit