Wash trade

A wash trade is a transaction in which the same beneficial owner is on both sides, so no ownership changes hands and no market risk is taken, yet a trade prints publicly as if it were genuine.

manipulation techniques · updated 2026-09-08

Where does wash trade come up?

This term is used in the following manipulation techniques, each explained in full on its own page.

• Wash trading — Wash trading is buying and selling the same asset with no change in beneficial ownership and no market risk, so that a trade prints publicly and creates a false impression of activity or price.
• Exchange wash trading — Exchange wash trading is a trading venue reporting volume that did not genuinely occur, or permitting others to generate it, in order to appear more liquid and rank higher than it is.

Enforcement actions involving these techniques

See also

• Matched order — A matched order is a prearranged trade between two parties acting in concert, entered so that they execute against each other at a…
• Painting the tape — Painting the tape is executing a series of transactions to create the appearance of activity or a particular price trend on the pu…

Terms that refer here

Beneficial ownership · Matched order · Painting the tape · Stock pool · Tape

Back to the full glossary — 261 defined terms.