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James Beddington

James Beddington has spent two decades reporting on the City of London and UK financial markets. He writes about how markets really work, the players behind the prices, and what private investors need to know to level the playing field.

Tree shake concept in small-cap trading: price moves and market maker tactics
Street Smart

Tree shakes: how market makers move small-cap prices

Tree shakes can make small-cap price moves look more alarming than they are. Here is how to read the screen…

MAY 24, 2026
Tree shakes and small-cap market maker price movement screen
Street Smart

Tree shakes: how market makers move small-cap prices

Tree shakes explained: how market makers, liquidity and quote moves can affect small-cap investors before they react to price action.

MAY 23, 2026
Tree shake market maker context shown through stock market data on a screen
Street Smart

Pete and the tree shake: a market maker’s day in plain English

Tree shakes can make small-cap price moves look more meaningful than they are. Learn how to read the screen without…

MAY 22, 2026
Garet Uk illustration for Cristoniq
Street Smart

Gareth Hall, drip-fed exclusives, and the smaller-company PR underbelly

Not every "exclusive" you read in a tip sheet or trade publication arrived by accident. Some of them were placed…

MAY 21, 2026
Hostile Takeove Uk illustration for Cristoniq
Street Smart

Hostile takeover: how the headline battle is fought

When two PR teams fight over the same story in a hostile takeover, every headline is a move. Inside the…

MAY 20, 2026
Inside The Press Uk illustration for Cristoniq
Street Smart

Inside the press release: how a 20% profit fall becomes ‘resilient results in a year of extraordinary volatility’

Every results announcement tells two stories. One is in the numbers. The other is in everything around them. Here is…

MAY 19, 2026
The DOJ table, then and now: what 25 years of insider dealing prosecutions actually show
Street Smart

The DOJ table, then and now: what 25 years of insider dealing prosecutions actually show

The FCA's own conviction data tells the same story Ian Lyall told with DOJ figures in 2010: insider dealing is…

MAY 18, 2026
RBS Gogarburn headquarters illustrating why takeovers fail and the ABN Amro deal
Street Smart

Vanity, egotism and fear: the three forces that get RBS-shaped deals approved

Most big takeovers destroy value for the buyer's shareholders. Vanity, empire-building and fear explain why. RBS and ABN Amro is…

MAY 17, 2026
Share ramping: a stock chart spiking with coordinated forum posts and social media chatter overlaid
Street Smart

From ADVFN to Reddit: the coordinated share ramp has just changed channels

The City Slickers case showed how share ramping worked in 2010. The mechanic has not changed, but the channels now…

MAY 16, 2026
Pump, dump, and the Telegram channel: how the 2010 boiler room moved to your messaging app
Street Smart

Pump, dump, and the Telegram channel: how the 2010 boiler room moved to your messaging app

The pump-and-dump hasn't changed since 2010. The boiler room of cold calls has moved to Telegram, Discord and TikTok. Recognise…

MAY 15, 2026