pump and dump

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As we have detailed in prior posts (most recently here), one of the key securities class action litigation filing trends this year has been the emergence of a host of securities suits alleging various types of market manipulation, including, in particular pump-and-dump schemes. In the latest example of this trend, on September 10, 2026, a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities lawsuit against the Singapore-based Ryde Group (RYDE) in a complaint alleging that the defendants engaged in a pump and dump scheme. This new lawsuit is the 15th market manipulation complaint to be filed so far this year.

Continue Reading New Market Manipulation-Related Securities Suit Filed Against Ryde Group

The wave of securities class actions alleging market manipulation involving recently public, low-float companies continues to grow. Notably, many of these lawsuits have involved non-U.S. companies that recently completed IPOs on U.S. exchanges. Two new pump-and-dump lawsuits, filed within a day of one another in the Southern District of New York against China-based iTonic Holdings Ltd. and Park Ha Biological Technology Co., Ltd., increase the number of market manipulation cases filed in 2026 to 13.

Continue Reading Pump-and-Dump Securities Suit Filing Trend Continues to Build

In a rare trial in a securities class action lawsuit, a federal jury has ruled that hedge fund Armistice Capital and certain of its executives had not, as the plaintiffs alleged, committed insider trading or engaged in a pump-and-dump scheme in selling over $200 million in vaccine company Vaxart stock during the COVID-19 pandemic. The jury specifically held that the plaintiffs had not proven that the defendants had engaged in a scheme to defraud and had not proven their insider trading allegations.

Continue Reading Rare Securities Class Action Lawsuit Trial Results in Defense Verdict

In February, I noted an emerging securities litigation trend involving pump-and-dump schemes characterized by thin public float, retail investor participation, and the amplifying effects of social media. Three subsequent pump-and-dump securities filings in February and March 2026, along with a recent federal court ruling involving social media platform liability, provide further evidence that these risks may be accelerating. Taken together, these developments have important implications for D&O liability exposure and for underwriters evaluating risks associated with low-float issuers and companies whose securities trading activity may be influenced by online promotional activity.

Continue Reading Follow-On Developments in Pump-and-Dump Litigation
Sarah Abrams

Those who pay attention to these kinds of things may have noted that in recent weeks there has been a rash of pump-and-dump scheme securities class action lawsuit filings. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at these recent cases and identifies several key features the lawsuits have in common. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. Here is Sarah’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Low-Float IPOs and Pump-And-Dump Risk

The filing of AI-Washing related securities suits is by now a well-established phenomenon. But a securities suit filed earlier this week presents an interesting new variant on this phenomenon. The new lawsuit alleges that the defendant company used the announcement of a supposed AI-related “collaboration” with Microsoft allegedly to “pump” the company’s share price just before disclosing an at-the-market private placement. As discussed below, the new lawsuit is just the latest in a recent series of securities class action lawsuits alleging share price pumping schemes.

Continue Reading Securities Suit Alleges AI-Washing Stock Price “Pump”