IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v63y2023i4p4713-4728.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Plus Token and investor searching behaviour – A cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme

Author

Listed:
  • Shuyu Zhang
  • Dunli Zhang
  • Jianming Zheng
  • Walter Aerts
  • Dandan Xu

Abstract

In July 2020, the Chinese government warned that the Plus Token was a Ponzi scheme based on blockchain. More than 200 million investors were involved in this scam. We investigate how investors' search behaviour is associated with their decision making. We find that the bitcoin bag of words Baidu index is positively and significantly related to bitcoins transferred to Plus Token addresses, suggesting that public prominence of searches about bitcoin and blockchain tends to be related to investor decisions regarding the Plus Token project.

Suggested Citation

  • Shuyu Zhang & Dunli Zhang & Jianming Zheng & Walter Aerts & Dandan Xu, 2023. "Plus Token and investor searching behaviour – A cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(4), pages 4713-4728, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:4:p:4713-4728
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.13128
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13128
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.13128?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hofstetter, Marc & Mejía, Daniel & Rosas, José Nicolás & Urrutia, Miguel, 2018. "Ponzi schemes and the financial sector: DMG and DRFE in Colombia," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 18-33.
    2. Jiaqi Xiao & Artūras Juodis & Yiannis Karavias & Vasilis Sarafidis & Jan Ditzen, 2023. "Improved tests for Granger noncausality in panel data," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 23(1), pages 230-242, March.
    3. Thomas Dimpfl & Stephan Jank, 2016. "Can Internet Search Queries Help to Predict Stock Market Volatility?," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 22(2), pages 171-192, March.
    4. Chris Jarvis, 2000. "The Rise and Fall of the Pyramid Schemes in Albania," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 47(1), pages 1-1.
    5. Makarov, Igor & Schoar, Antoinette, 2020. "Trading and arbitrage in cryptocurrency markets," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 100409, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Makarov, Igor & Schoar, Antoinette, 2020. "Trading and arbitrage in cryptocurrency markets," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(2), pages 293-319.
    7. Takeda, Fumiko & Wakao, Takumi, 2014. "Google search intensity and its relationship with returns and trading volume of Japanese stocks," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 1-18.
    8. Costola, Michele & Iacopini, Matteo & Santagiustina, Carlo R.M.A., 2021. "Google search volumes and the financial markets during the COVID-19 outbreak," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    9. Zhi Da & Joseph Engelberg & Pengjie Gao, 2011. "In Search of Attention," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(5), pages 1461-1499, October.
    10. Tantaopas, Parkpoom & Padungsaksawasdi, Chaiyuth & Treepongkaruna, Sirimon, 2016. "Attention effect via internet search intensity in Asia-Pacific stock markets," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 107-124.
    11. Zhang, Shuyu & Aerts, Walter & Lu, Liping & Pan, Huifeng, 2019. "Readability of token whitepaper and ICO first-day return," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 58-61.
    12. Fang, Jianchun & Gozgor, Giray & Lau, Chi-Keung Marco & Lu, Zhou, 2020. "The impact of Baidu Index sentiment on the volatility of China's stock markets," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 32(C).
    13. Tennant, David, 2011. "Why do people risk exposure to Ponzi schemes? Econometric evidence from Jamaica," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 328-346, July.
    14. Ville Rantala, 2019. "How Do Investment Ideas Spread through Social Interaction? Evidence from a Ponzi Scheme," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 74(5), pages 2349-2389, October.
    15. Ding, Rong & Hou, Wenxuan, 2015. "Retail investor attention and stock liquidity," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 12-26.
    16. Joseph, Kissan & Babajide Wintoki, M. & Zhang, Zelin, 2011. "Forecasting abnormal stock returns and trading volume using investor sentiment: Evidence from online search," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 1116-1127, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Costola, Michele & Iacopini, Matteo & Santagiustina, Carlo R.M.A., 2021. "Google search volumes and the financial markets during the COVID-19 outbreak," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    2. Chaiyuth Padungsaksawasdi & Sirimon Treepongkaruna & Robert Brooks, 2019. "Investor Attention and Stock Market Activities: New Evidence from Panel Data," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-19, June.
    3. Tihana Škrinjarić, 2019. "Time Varying Spillovers between the Online Search Volume and Stock Returns: Case of CESEE Markets," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-30, October.
    4. Christophe Desagre & Catherine D'Hondt, 2020. "Googlization and retail investors' trading activity," LIDAM Discussion Papers LFIN 2020004, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain Finance (LFIN).
    5. Cheng, Feiyang & Wang, Chunfeng & Chiao, Chaoshin & Yao, Shouyu & Fang, Zhenming, 2021. "Retail attention, retail trades, and stock price crash risk," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    6. Desagre, Christophe & D’Hondt, Catherine, 2021. "Googlization and retail trading activity," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C).
    7. Chen, Zhongdong & Craig, Karen Ann, 2023. "Active attention, retail investor base, and stock returns," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    8. Dong, Dayong & Wu, Keke & Fang, Jianchun & Gozgor, Giray & Yan, Cheng, 2022. "Investor attention factors and stock returns: Evidence from China," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    9. Kim, Neri & Lučivjanská, Katarína & Molnár, Peter & Villa, Roviel, 2019. "Google searches and stock market activity: Evidence from Norway," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 208-220.
    10. Tripathi, Abhinava & Pandey, Ashish, 2021. "Information dissemination across global markets during the spread of COVID-19 pandemic," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 103-115.
    11. Tantaopas, Parkpoom & Padungsaksawasdi, Chaiyuth & Treepongkaruna, Sirimon, 2016. "Attention effect via internet search intensity in Asia-Pacific stock markets," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 107-124.
    12. Geng, Yuedan & Ye, Qiang & Jin, Yu & Shi, Wen, 2022. "Crowd wisdom and internet searches: What happens when investors search for stocks?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    13. Papadamou, Stephanos & Fassas, Athanasios P. & Kenourgios, Dimitris & Dimitriou, Dimitrios, 2023. "Effects of the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic on implied stock market volatility: International evidence using a google trend measure," The Journal of Economic Asymmetries, Elsevier, vol. 28(C).
    14. Gao, Yang & Wang, Yaojun & Wang, Chao & Liu, Chao, 2018. "Internet attention and information asymmetry: Evidence from Qihoo 360 search data on the Chinese stock market," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 510(C), pages 802-811.
    15. Li, Changgui & Liu, Xiaowen & Hou, Zhiping & Li, Yongyi, 2023. "Retail investor attention and equity mispricing: The mediating role of earnings management," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    16. Mauck, Nathan & Pruitt, Stephen & Zhang, Wenjia, 2022. "Words matter: Market responses to changes in U.S. and Chinese trade-related internet search frequency under different U.S. administrations," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    17. Papadamou, Stephanos & Fassas, Athanasios & Kenourgios, Dimitris & Dimitriou, Dimitrios, 2020. "Direct and Indirect Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic on Implied Stock Market Volatility: Evidence from Panel Data Analysis," MPRA Paper 100020, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Ramos, Sofia B. & Latoeiro, Pedro & Veiga, Helena, 2020. "Limited attention, salience of information and stock market activity," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 92-108.
    19. Takayuki Morimoto & Yoshinori Kawasaki, 2017. "Forecasting Financial Market Volatility Using a Dynamic Topic Model," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 24(3), pages 149-167, September.
    20. Szczygielski, Jan Jakub & Charteris, Ailie & Bwanya, Princess Rutendo & Brzeszczyński, Janusz, 2024. "Google search trends and stock markets: Sentiment, attention or uncertainty?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:4:p:4713-4728. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.