I once came across a discussion about what a pump is on the crypto market, and I understand why beginners often fall into this trap. It’s not some exotic scheme — pump and dump has been working for decades, it’s just that in crypto it has taken on a new scale.

It looks simple: a group coordinates the purchase of a low-liquidity token through private chats, creates artificial demand, and the price skyrockets within a few minutes by 5–50 times. Of course, these “rocket” candles appear, people panic from FOMO, think they’ve missed the train, and rush to buy at the peak. Then organizers and insiders just dump everything — the price drops 80–99% in seconds. Those who came last are left with losses.

I remember, around 2024–2025, this was especially noticeable with meme coins and tokens on Solana and Base. Some groups have 100–300 thousand members, coordinated through bot signals. The mechanics are clear: choose a token, buy synchronously, organizers exit — and it’s done.

Legally, this is prohibited in most countries, but it’s hard to track on the crypto market. So the main protection is simply not to chase +1000% gains in 10 minutes. If you see a pump signal, you’re already at the end of the line, not the beginning. That’s basic math.

Honestly, it’s better to just understand how it works and avoid such situations. If something smells like a pump — it probably is a pump. Be cautious with private groups promising guaranteed profits. They promise profits for themselves, not for you.