What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor (2024)

  • Back to:
  • Useful Information

We explore the three types of market abuse you need to be aware of, and offer practical scenarios to demonstrate how you can spot and avoid it.

The term “market abuse” is given when a person or group of people act to disadvantage other investors in the market. There are three types of market abuse, defined as:

Insider dealing

This is where a person buys or sells securities on the basis of material information that is not yet publicly known and which could affect the price of the securities if it were made public. For example, a takeover that has not yet been declared to the market.

Market manipulation

This is where there is deliberate attempt to interfere with the pricing of a share or operation of a market in which such a share is traded. It can create an artificial, false or misleading impression of the price that may prompt others to react to this and could result disadvantaging others through such behaviour.

Unlawful disclosure

This is where a person possesses inside information and passes that information to someone who is not authorised to have it.

The view from the Regulator

Market Abuse Regulation came into force in July 2016 with the aim to increase market integrity and investor protection. It falls under the UK’s civil market abuse regime and criminal regime; and it is a civil offence to trade based on insider information under these regimes.

Why is this important?

As a result of insider dealing or market manipulation, innocent investors may buy or sell investments at a false price. Moreover, market abuse of this kind undermines confidence in markets.

What we do

We have our own internal procedures to detect suspicious trading activity which is reported to the FCA under regulatory requirements.

What you can do

Stay vigilant and do not let others coerce you into dealing in shares if you think the motives could amount to market abuse.

Some practical examples

ScenarioCould this be interpreted as market abuse?Why
A family member has told you to buy shares in a company that they work in as the shares will significantly increase in value within a week due to an announcement that will be made from the company which will have a positive impact on the share price. You act on the information and place the tradebeforethe company announcement on the public domain.YesFrom what has been said it doesn’t sound like this information is in the public domain. It also appears that when the information does become public there is a good chance the share price will be impacted. Acting on any information received (via friends, family, overheard in conversation or other) that is not available in the public domain could constitute to insider dealing.
You read on a website that a company has just entered into discussions about a possible merger with another company. Having investigated, and based on what you have learned, you think the merger will impact the company share price positively and as such you intend to buy shares.NoThe information is in the public domain and you are acting on your own decision having done your own research.
You place multiple limit orders (placing orders to buy or sell when a share price reaches a certain level) in a security that is away from the current market price, then you subsequently cancel or amend the order(s), which creates a false impression of demand.YesThis could be seen as an attempt to interfere with pricing and give a misleading impression of demand. Others could react to this and market prices could change on the back of this activity. This could be construed as market manipulation.
You place a large order and request that the order be submitted minutes before the close of market trading, hoping to manipulate the market by raising the security’s closing price to make it appear higher than its actual value.YesThis could be seen as an attempt to interfere with pricing and give a misleading impression of demand. Others could react to this and market prices could change on the back of this activity. This could be construed as market manipulation.

You may also be interested in:

The value of investments can fall as well as rise. You may get back less than you invest. Tax rules can change and their effects on you will depend on your individual circ*mstances.

What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor (1)

Investment Account

Low cost, flexible investing

Our Investment Account

What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor (2)

Investment ISA

A tax-efficient way to invest

Invest your £20,000 ISA allowance and protect your investment returns from income tax, tax on dividends and capital gains tax (CGT), with our Investment ISA.

Our Investment ISA

What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor (3)

Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)

A tax-efficient way to save for retirement

Our award winning Self-Invested Personal Pension (Best SIPP award 2022 at the Shares Awards) is designed to help you prepare for retirement.

Let us help you build your retirement pot and make your own investment decisions.

Learn about our SIPP

Important information

What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor (2024)

FAQs

What is Market abuse? | Barclays Smart Investor? ›

You place a large order and request that the order be submitted minutes before the close of market trading, hoping to manipulate the market by raising the security's closing price to make it appear higher than its actual value.

What is the best description of market abuse? ›

Market abuse occurs when a person or group acts to disadvantage other investors in a qualifying market. It incorporates two broad categories of behaviour: market manipulation and insider dealing. Market manipulation occurs when a person distorts or affects qualifying investments or market transactions.

What is an example of market abuse? ›

Selling and buying the same financial instruments to create a false impression of activity in the marketplace. Painting the tape. Trading securities in a manipulative way, e.g. buying a large number of stocks, in order to attract other investors and increase the price of a certain company's shares.

What is the market abuse rule? ›

The Criminal Sanctions for Market Abuse (CSMAD or MAD II) requires the UK and each EU member state to implement legislation to ensure that market abuse is a criminal offence which can be effectively punished. Together, they seek to improve confidence in the integrity of European financial markets.

Is Barclays Smart Investor worth it? ›

Barclays Smart Investor is a solid investment platform that does not charge high fees and has a wide range of account options and investments. So yes, it can be worth opening an account if you are an investor focusing on long-term saving and have a decent investment portfolio.

What is the meaning of market abuse? ›

We explore the three types of market abuse you need to be aware of, and offer practical scenarios to demonstrate how you can spot and avoid it. The term “market abuse” is given when a person or group of people act to disadvantage other investors in the market.

Who does market abuse apply to? ›

Under the Market Abuse Regulation, PDMRs are required to notify relevant authorities of any order or transaction undertaken on personal accounts that relate to the issuer or EAMP. This applies to all financial instruments, including, but not limited to, shares, derivatives, and debt instruments.

What are the red flags for wash trading? ›

Abnormal price movements: Wash trading is often used to artificially inflate the price of an asset, so if you notice that an asset's price is moving in an abnormal or inconsistent way, it could be a sign of wash trading.

How to detect stock manipulation? ›

They also point out that, most often, prices and liquidity are elevated when the manipulator sells rather than when he buys. This shows that changes in prices, volume and volatility are the critical parameters that are to be tracked to detect manipulation.

How to detect spoofing trading? ›

We apply supervised algorithms, such as the Support Vector Machine (SVM), supervised Classification and Regression Tree (CART) algorithm, and K-Nearest Neighbors (K-NN) algorithm, to detect typical characteristics of a spoofing episode.

What are the risks of market abuse? ›

When assessing the adequacy of such monitoring systems, reference should be made to the six risk behaviours as set out in UK MAR, namely:
  • Insider dealing.
  • Unlawful disclosure.
  • Misuse of information.
  • Manipulating transactions.
  • Manipulating devices.
  • Dissemination.
  • Distortion and misleading behaviour.
Feb 16, 2023

What is the difference between insider dealing and market abuse? ›

While insider dealing is a crime under the Criminal Justice Act 1993, market abuse comprises a range of behaviours and is more loosely defined under civil, rather than criminal, law. The maximum punishment for anyone found guilty of the crime of insider dealing is ten years imprisonment.

Is market abuse a financial crime? ›

Insider trading, market abuse, and market manipulation are financial crimes that undermine the integrity and fairness of financial markets. These offences erode trust, distort prices, and discourage participation in markets, with broad implications for the economy and society.

Who is the smartest stock Investor? ›

Warren Buffett is widely considered the greatest investor in the world. Born in 1930 in Omaha, Nebraska, Buffett began investing at a young age and became the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, one of the world's largest and most successful investment firms.

Do smart investors outperform dumb investors? ›

High-IQ investors' aggregate stock purchases subsequently outperform low-IQ investors' purchases, particularly in the near future.

Is Vanguard better than Barclays? ›

Our experts rated the trading platform of Barclays as much less user-friendly than the platform of Vanguard, found that clients have access to about the same number of markets and products with Barclays, while Vanguard provides somewhat lower-quality research and education.

What description best defines a market? ›

What Is a Market? A market is a place where parties can gather to facilitate the exchange of goods and services. The parties involved are usually buyers and sellers.

What is the crime of market abuse? ›

These practices refer to publishing false information about either the price of a financial instrument or volumes of trade orders. These then create a false impression of supply and demand and, ultimately, seek to manipulate the market.

What is market power abuse? ›

Examples of abusive conduct include predatory pricing, anti-competitive tying and bundling, and refusal to deal. Predatory pricing refers to a powerful business setting prices so low that it deliberately makes a loss in an attempt to force competitors out of the market or to “discipline” smaller competitors.

What is the brief description of market? ›

market, a means by which the exchange of goods and services takes place as a result of buyers and sellers being in contact with one another, either directly or through mediating agents or institutions. Markets in the most literal and immediate sense are places in which things are bought and sold.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Last Updated:

Views: 5727

Rating: 5 / 5 (50 voted)

Reviews: 89% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Birthday: 1996-05-19

Address: Apt. 114 873 White Lodge, Libbyfurt, CA 93006

Phone: +5983010455207

Job: Legacy Representative

Hobby: Blacksmithing, Urban exploration, Sudoku, Slacklining, Creative writing, Community, Letterboxing

Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.