ChainThink News, April 13: According to the Korean *Korea Economic Daily*, the Financial Services Commission (FSS) has publicly disclosed typical manipulative trading practices in the cryptocurrency market involving automated order placement via API to distort prices, and announced it will launch targeted investigations against accounts identified with excessive abnormal order activity.

The FSS stated that API-based trading currently accounts for over 30% of total trading volume in South Korea's cryptocurrency market.

The FSS revealed four primary manipulation tactics: first, repeatedly executing small-market-value trades via API to create an illusion of high trading activity, while manually placing high-priced limit buy orders to artificially inflate prices, then selling at a profit once retail investors follow; second, pre-placing sell orders above current holding prices, followed by continuous API-driven high-priced limit buy orders to drive prices up to target levels before cashing out; third, repeatedly placing and canceling orders to fabricate artificial demand; fourth, using multiple accounts for wash trading to distort market dynamics. The FSS warns investors that price spikes are particularly common around exchange price reset times—periods when high-frequency API trading is concentrated—and urges vigilance during these windows. It further cautions that if an API Key is leaked, its holder may be unwittingly implicated as an accomplice in money laundering or other illicit activities.