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Barry Silbert, founder of Digital Currency Group and ‎Bitcoin Investment Trust, may be headed for trouble as the U.S. financial ‎police are ‎supposed to track down his tweets with respect to an easily ‎manipulated cryptocurrency known as Ethereum Classic (ETC), two ‎securities lawyers told Reuters.‎

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Silbert has been a big backer for the digital coin, which grew in value more ‎than 90 times in 2017, before falling back within a broader selloff across the ‎cryptocurrency markets.‎

The attorneys said that authorities should probe Barry’s role with ‎Ethereum Classic, as his postings on price and attempts to divert enthusiasm for the new coin raise concerns over possible price manipulation. They ‎pointed out to ‎some samples of Silbert’s tweets that they claim promote ETC‎ as a viable alternative to Ethereum.‎

Some critics feel Silbert is orchestrating a classic “Pump and Dump” ‎by using his name and connections to trigger bullish sentiment about ‎ETC. That a potential investigation over illegal act of manipulation could ‎be ‎looking at ‎a “pro tip” he published in November, where he advised an investor to ‎‎“close out his short position before an Ethereum Classic Summit” ‎that was organized by DCG in Hong Kong. ‎

Just as mainstream investors have come to rely on Twitter feeds in place of ‎‎traditional wire services, crypto traders and ICOs participants are now prone to moving on a ‎headline ‎glimpsed on social media. The alleged manipulation efforts were not limited to social media, as news ‎reports claimed earlier that CoinDesk’s coverage has changed since ‎Silbert’s DCG acquired the cryptocurrency news site. ‎

Commenting on the allegations, Silbert told Reuters last month that he was “highly, highly ‎sensitive” to the rules that govern financial markets and that ‎he and his ‎company are subject to anti-fraud provisions and insider trading ‎and … all ‎those types of things.”‎

Silbert stated that he would never make a recommendation or give price ‎‎predictions. He added: “DCG, its subsidiaries and employees take ‎pride in ‎our strict compliance policies and adherence to all applicable ‎regulations, ‎including company-wide rules and restrictions concerning the ‎trading of ‎digital assets.”  ‎

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