{"id":353051,"date":"2021-10-15T06:33:02","date_gmt":"2021-10-15T03:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/asic-targets-pump-and-dump-telegram-groups\/"},"modified":"2021-10-15T06:33:02","modified_gmt":"2021-10-15T03:33:02","slug":"asic-targets-pump-and-dump-telegram-groups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/asic-targets-pump-and-dump-telegram-groups\/","title":{"rendered":"# ASIC targets pump and dump Telegram groups"},"content":{"rendered":"

“# ASIC targets pump and dump Telegram groups <\/strong>”
\n<\/p>\n

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is going after pump and dump groups on Telegram. <\/p>\n

On Monday an account under the name \u201cASIC\u201d posted a message in the \u201cASX Pump Organization\u201d on Telegram to warn around 300 members of the group that \u201cwe\u2019re monitoring this platform and we may be investigating you.\u201d:<\/p>\n

\u201cCoordinated pumping of shares for profits can be illegal. We can see all trades and have access to trader identities. […] You run the risk of a criminal record, including fines of more than $1 million and prison time.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Many of the group\u2019s members assumed the account to be fake, however ASIC confirmed the validity<\/a> of the now-deleted message to The Australian news<\/a>paper.<\/p>\n

While some members of the community have laughed off the message from ASIC, others have vented their frustrations at being targeted instead of firms and corporate traders. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat ASIC needs to do is go after the corporates who inside trade and short companies all the time, and not spend valuable time here hassling 300 small investors who are doing nothing wrong by sharing stock recommendations. This has to be the biggest joke in history,\u201d a member wrote. <\/p>\n

On Sept. 23 ASIC published a warning about a \u201cconcerning trend\u201d of social media<\/a> groups engaging in \u201cblatant\u201d pump and dump campaigns. It stated that \u201cin some cases, posts on social media forums may mislead subscribers by suggesting the activity is legal,\u201d before warning of prison sentences of up to 15 years and fines of more than $1 million. <\/p>\n

\u201cASIC has been working closely with market operators to identify and disrupt pump and dump campaigns, and we will continue to target actions that threaten the integrity of markets and to take enforcement action where app<\/a>ropriate,\u201d said ASIC Commissioner Cathie Armour as part of the release. <\/p>\n

Crypto-based pump and dumps weren\u2019t specifically targeted by ASIC, however a spokesperson for the regulator told Cointelegraph: <\/p>\n

\u201cThe campaign is targeting listed stocks but the messaging is relevant for all financial products, including any crypto assets that may be, or involves, financial products.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Related: <\/em><\/strong>New Australian crypto legislation likely in 2022, Senator Bragg tells NFT Fest<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cEven where the activity relates to cryptocurrencies\/products that may not be financial products under the Corporations Act, the pump and dump practice is concerning as it can lead to investor losses and create unnecessary price volatility,\u201d the representative added. <\/p>\n

Pump and dump groups have grown in popularity this year after the r\/wallstreetbets and Robinhood saga in January. The Reddit group \u2014which is admittedly more about the pump than the dump \u2014 collectively worked together to pump stocks that hedge funds were shorting against such as Game<\/a>Stop (GME) and AMC Entertainment (AMC).<\/p>\n