The volatile market in the crypto world often makes people anxious, but have you ever thought that behind it is actually an art of chip exchange?

When I first entered the scene, a 10% drop in my account would make me curse for half a day. I always felt like someone was watching my coins from behind the scenes, deliberately opposing me. It wasn't until I experienced several cycles of bull and bear markets that I truly understood: the market manipulation by big players is never aimed at individuals, but rather a necessary market cleanup—just like farmers till the soil before planting, and before pulling the market up, they must first wash out a wave.
The 2018 METIS market changed my perspective completely. During that period, it fell from 1.2U steadily down to 0.9U, dragging on for two months, and the community was full of complaints. A seasoned investor cut his position at 0.95U and proudly said he dodged a bullet. Little did he know, the chips he threw out were exactly swallowed by the big players.
Then came the more intense move—suddenly plunging to 0.7U and quickly bouncing back, technical traders started shouting "double bottom formation." As a result, the big players countered with a drop to 0.65U, and the group chat exploded. This is a combination of "grinding" and "trapping" tactics, with only one purpose: to make those with weak resolve voluntarily surrender their chips.
**The core logic of market manipulation is actually very simple**
Essentially, market manipulation is about exchanging chips, not grabbing chips. The big players create panic to make retail investors sell cheap chips at the bottom, which then flow into the hands of those with more patience. When most retail investors choose to hold on stubbornly, the big players escalate their tactics—either extending the washout period from days to weeks or even months; or intensifying the washout from mild fluctuations to fierce sell-offs.
Once you understand this, you'll realize that those declines that once scared you are actually the market helping you clear out less committed participants.