Are Crypto Exchanges Manipulating The Bitcoin Price Crash?

bitcoinistPublished on 2026-01-20Last updated on 2026-01-20

Abstract

Crypto pundit Wimar accuses major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase of manipulating Bitcoin’s price, causing a crash from its 2026 high. He claims exchanges orchestrate rapid price pumps to trigger retail FOMO and liquidate leveraged positions, then dump large volumes to cause sharp declines. Wimar argues recent Trump tariff announcements and EU retaliation reports are not the real cause; instead, he points to coordinated trading activity and on-chain data showing synchronized movements between exchanges and ETF-linked wallets. Bitcoin fell over 2% to around $90,900, with Wimar insisting such volatility is driven by exchange manipulation rather than news events.

Crypto pundit Wimar has claimed that crypto exchanges are manipulating the Bitcoin price, causing it to crash from its 2026 high. This comes amid recent developments with the Trump tariffs, which have caused the flagship crypto to also decline.

Crypto Pundit Accuses Crypto Exchanges Of Manipulating Bitcoin Price

In an X post, Wimar asserted that crypto exchanges are manipulating the Bitcoin price. He noted how BTC just dumped from $95,500 to $91,900 with no news. The pundit claimed it is the same script, over and over again, as the flagship crypto rose from $89,000 to $95,000 and has now fallen to $91,000, just as it did when it rose from $85,000 to $88,000 and then fell to $84,000.

Wimar claimed that this is a liquidity hunt, alluding to the flows to prove that the Bitcoin price is manipulated. He noted that within minutes, Wintermute, Binance, Coinbase, and ETF-linked wallets were all active simultaneously. Large blocks were said to have moved from exchange to exchange, with huge market buys hitting thin books, and then, just as fast, these tokens were dumped.

The crypto pundit also highlighted Arkham data, noting that the flows tell the real story. Wimar claimed that coins move into exchanges right after the pump, which he stated is not a coincidence. The pundit further remarked that these crypto exchanges wait for a setup where liquidity is low, leverage is high, and funding is stretched.

Source: Chart from Wimar on X

Wimar asserted that these crypto exchanges run the same play every time, where they first pump the Bitcoin price fast on thin books to trigger FOMO and then liquidate shorts. Retail investors then see green candles and open long positions because the price action appears to be a breakout, but they fall into the trap, according to the pundit.

Wimar stated that once enough people are stuck in leverage, the coins hit crypto exchanges and selling starts, leading to a Bitcoin price crash. The pundit accused these exchanges of dumping into the demand they just created, forcing fresh longs to get liquidated and farming both long and short traders with no news.

BTC’s Current Price Action Isn’t Based On Headlines

Wimar doubled down on his accusation of crypto exchanges being responsible for the Bitcoin price crash, stating that BTC doesn’t move like this because of headlines. He claimed that it moves like because leverage piles up, and someone decides it is “payday.” As such, the pundit suggested that the Trump tariffs fears aren’t what is sparking this recent market crash.

Trump had announced fresh tariffs on France, the U.K., the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Finland, and Norway over the weekend. The Bitcoin price had remained unchanged following the announcement, but began to crash following reports that the European Union (EU) was considering retaliatory tariffs.

At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $90,900, down over 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

BTC trading at $91,070 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com

Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com

Related Questions

QWhat does crypto pundit Wimar accuse crypto exchanges of doing to the Bitcoin price?

AWimar accuses crypto exchanges of manipulating the Bitcoin price, causing it to crash through a coordinated process of pumping the price to trigger FOMO and liquidate shorts, then dumping coins to force liquidations.

QAccording to Wimar, what pattern do crypto exchanges follow in their alleged manipulation?

AWimar claims exchanges follow the same script: they pump the Bitcoin price fast on thin books to trigger FOMO and liquidate shorts, then once leverage is high, they dump coins into the demand they created, causing a crash.

QWhich specific entities does Wimar mention as being active simultaneously during the price movement?

AWimar mentions that Wintermute, Binance, Coinbase, and ETF-linked wallets were all active simultaneously during the price movement.

QWhat reason does Wimar give for dismissing headlines (like Trump tariffs) as the cause of the crash?

AWimar states that BTC doesn't move like this because of headlines, but rather because leverage piles up and someone decides it is 'payday', implying coordinated trading activity is the real cause.

QWhat was the price range of Bitcoin's movement that Wimar describes as part of the manipulation?

AWimar describes Bitcoin dumping from $95,500 to $91,900, and references a previous similar pattern where it rose from $89,000 to $95,000 then fell to $91,000, and also when it rose from $85,000 to $88,000 then fell to $84,000.

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