3 Types of Stock Price Rigging to Watch Out for

Stock trading at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) is regulated to maintain fair transaction practices that do not harm anyone, especially retail investors. However, there are still parties who take advantage of the gap in the rules to act “ rogue” for their own benefit.

There are several cheats related to stock price rigging that you must know and understand.

1. Creating Fake Demand/Supply

A fake demand or supply aims to influence the perception of other investors by placing a large number of orders without the intention of executing the transaction.

When more investors start buying or selling the stock, the trader will cancel the order. This is usually done on less liquid such as penny stocks.

2. Wash Sale

Wash sale is done by simultaneously and repeatedly buying and selling a particular stock above the market price by only one party. For example, Mr. X through brokerage account M places a sell order, then Mr. X through brokerage account N places a buy order so that the orders match without changing ownership.

This can create the illusion of an increase in the price, transaction volume and liquidity of the stock. Wash sales are also sometimes conducted by a group of individuals under different names to minimize fraud detection.

3. Marking The Close

As the name implies, marking the close is done at the end of the trading day with the aim of creating a soaring closing price that will attract investors the next day. This can involve the practice of creating fake demand/supply or wash sale.

However, not to worry, the IDX has anticipated this cheat through pre-opening and pre-closing market sessions that use the call auction transaction mechanism.

Conclusion

In addition to price rigging, there are many other forms of stock market manipulation that can disrupt investment plans, such as spreading false rumors and front running (taking advantage of price changes that will occur based on information that has not been made public thus causing an unfair market).

Therefore, always accompany technical analysis with fundamentals. Stay critical and wise. Understand any potential cheat so that you are not easily tricked.

Disclaimer: The content is made for educational purposes, not a recommendation to buy or sell a particular stock. PT KAF Sekuritas Indonesia is licensed and supervised by the Financial Services Authority (OJK).