Top 12 Market Makers and Their Price Manipulation Tactics (Part 2)

Continuing from Part 1 of the series Top 12 Market Makers and Their Price Manipulation Tactics, I’ll now dive deeper into how to track the transactions and portfolios of major Market Makers, and spotlight the remaining six players on our list.

👀 Tracking Market Makers with Arkham Intel

Arkham Intel has become the go-to tool for anyone serious about tracking Market Makers. Instead of guessing who’s behind sudden price manipulation, Arkham lets you see their wallets transactions, including inflows and outflows of their money.

On Arkham, you can track Market Makers’ portfolios on the left panel and monitor their latest trades in the table at the bottom right. You can sort transactions by time, arrange them from largest to smallest, and quickly check if they’re trading the tokens you’re watching.

What makes Arkham especially powerful is the ability to set custom alerts delivered straight to Telegram, Slack, or Webhook. This becomes crucial when Market Makers execute large trades, often the very moves that create sharp price discrepancies.

With Arkham, you don’t just react to pumps, you track who’s behind them. That alone separates you from 90% of the market.

Okay, Let’s move on the next six Market Makers!

💼 Amber Group: Asia’s Market Maker Powerhouse

Amber Group is one of the most influential Market Makers in Asia, often sitting at the heart of high-volume altcoin moves. With deep connections to institutions and exchanges, they’ve built a reputation for controlling liquidity in mid-cap markets.

Their price manipulation strategy typically involves providing liquidity in thin books, then pulling walls at critical moments. Retail sees a strong buy wall and jumps in, only to watch it vanish when Amber flips to the other side. This tactic creates the illusion of strength while positioning them perfectly for the dumps.

Whenever you see a sudden move in Asia-focused tokens, check Amber’s wallets first. If they’re active, chances are you’re looking at engineered liquidity rather than organic demand. Knowing this can help you make smarter trades and avoid falling into traps.

Right now, Amber Group’s wallets appear to be adding positions in $WLD.X ( ▲ 7.63% ) and $LINEA.X ( ▲ 1.73% ) , so keep a close watch.

💼 B2C2: The Quant Hedge Fund Disguised as a Market Maker

B2C2 is a quant powerhouse with roots in high-frequency trading. But don’t let the institutional façade fool you. Their style of price manipulation comes in the form of subtle liquidity shifts that move Bitcoin and Ethereum markets without attracting attention.

Unlike Amber or DWF, B2C2 rarely runs influencer-driven campaigns. Instead, they quietly control the spread on major pairs, nudging price momentum in the direction that benefits their positions.

Arkham data shows B2C2 wallets move enormous $BTC.X ( ▲ 4.32% ) and $ETH.X ( ▲ 6.47% ) chunks through exchanges like Coinbase and Gemini. These flows often align with sudden shifts in derivatives funding rates, suggesting they’re hedging spot with perps and steering the narrative.

Traders should keep a close eye on $FLOKI.X ( ▲ 0.47% ) and $GALA.X ( ▲ 3.65% ) , as they are actively accumulating positions in both.

💼 Keyrock: Liquidity Engineers in Token Launches

Keyrock is often seen as one of the more ‘clean’ Market Makers in the space. Compared to others, they’ve had fewer accusations of outright price manipulation, and so far there hasn’t been any major case or solid evidence tying them to aggressive tactics. Most of their reputation still leans toward providing liquidity support for token projects rather than running pump-and-dump schemes.

Only a few projects have been suspected, such as Immutable X and Flow, which showed unusual order book behavior where Keyrock’s presence was later identified. They often accumulate before launch and then ‘orchestrate’ price discovery in a way that leaves little room for organic price action.

💼 Tokka Labs: Niche Altcoin Manipulator

Tokka Labs operates under the radar compared to giants like Amber or Kronos, but in smaller-cap markets, they punch far above their weight. Their specialty lies in altcoins with thin liquidity.

Their manipulation strategy is textbook: fake buy walls, influencer hype partnerships, and wash trades to inflate volume. Once retail piles in, Tokka quietly removes liquidity, trapping buyers at inflated levels. Tokens like Conflux $CFX.X ( ▲ 0.63% ) and other Asian-focused projects have shown suspicious trading patterns tied to Tokka activity.

Tokka’s wallets moving in clusters across multiple exchanges, making it harder to track them than bigger players even if you use Arkham. But their footprint is visible: sharp, unsustainable pumps in low-cap tokens.

If you’re trading niche Asian altcoins, always check order book depth. If the liquidity feels “too perfect,” Tokka may be engineering the stage for a dump.

💼 Zerocap: The Institutional Dark Horse

Zerocap is an Australian Market Maker with a strong focus on institutional clients. Unlike the flashy tactics of DWF or Amber, Zerocap plays a quieter but still manipulative role, especially in crypto-fiat pairs like BTC/AUD and ETH/AUD.

Their manipulation style revolves around bridging institutional liquidity into retail markets. By controlling large OTC flows, they can create sudden price shocks in pairs that don’t usually see high volume.

While they don’t typically run meme-coin pumps, Zerocap’s influence in institutional corridors can distort markets without most traders even realizing it. For example, sudden AUD-driven moves in Bitcoin often tie back to Zerocap’s client flows.

💼 Kronos Research: The Taipei Algo Giant

Kronos Research is a powerhouse in quantitative trading, known for its lightning-fast algorithms and heavy presence on derivatives exchanges. But speed and scale also make them one of the most impactful Market Makers when it comes to engineered volatility.

Their style of price manipulation often revolves around leveraging perps and futures markets. By pushing huge orders through Binance or OKX derivatives, they can spark cascading liquidations, driving spot markets in their favor.

This was especially visible during the FTX collapse, where Kronos was rumored to have lost over $600 million.

For retail, don’t overleverage when Kronos is active, because their manipulation style thrives on hunting weak hands through forced liquidations.

🧩 Conclusion: Reading the Market Maker Footprints

Once again, Market Makers are not just passive liquidity providers; they’re active players who thrive on price manipulation to maximize profits. From Amber’s aggressive walls, to Kronos’ liquidation games, each has a unique footprint. Some can be tracked clearly on Arkham, while others operate in the shadows, using decoy addresses with minimal funds to disguise their real moves.

By watching MM wallet flows, you stop trading blind. When a pump looks too good to be true, you’ll know who’s behind it, and whether it’s worth riding or better to step aside.

Market Makers run the game. Your job is not to fight them, but to follow their footprints and front-run their manipulation!