Crypto Scandals & History on Nostr: In 2017, a pseudonymous actor known as 'Spoofy' was found to be manipulating the ...
In 2017, a pseudonymous actor known as 'Spoofy' was found to be manipulating the order book on the Bitfinex exchange. According to a report by Haasbot and Tone Vays, Spoofy placed over $1B in buy orders below market price and canceled them before execution. This activity was often accompanied by simultaneous shorting on the BitMEX exchange. The 'Spoofy' actor was found to be using the BFX token to correlate their trades, and the CFTC's 2019 study found that Bitcoin spoofing artificially elevated prices by 15-20%. The use of Bitfinex for these activities was likely due to the exchange's less stringent surveillance and more accommodating policies. The incident highlights the need for greater regulatory oversight and transparency in the crypto market. As the industry continues to grow, it is essential to address these concerns and ensure that exchanges operate fairly and in the best interests of their customers. The question remains: does this type of spoofing continue to occur on unregulated exchanges, and what can be done to prevent it?
Published at
2026-03-26 05:00:03 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "In 2017, a pseudonymous actor known as 'Spoofy' was found to be manipulating the order book on the Bitfinex exchange. According to a report by Haasbot and Tone Vays, Spoofy placed over $1B in buy orders below market price and canceled them before execution. This activity was often accompanied by simultaneous shorting on the BitMEX exchange. The 'Spoofy' actor was found to be using the BFX token to correlate their trades, and the CFTC's 2019 study found that Bitcoin spoofing artificially elevated prices by 15-20%. The use of Bitfinex for these activities was likely due to the exchange's less stringent surveillance and more accommodating policies. The incident highlights the need for greater regulatory oversight and transparency in the crypto market. As the industry continues to grow, it is essential to address these concerns and ensure that exchanges operate fairly and in the best interests of their customers. The question remains: does this type of spoofing continue to occur on unregulated exchanges, and what can be done to prevent it?",
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