Where there is smoke..
Timing with corporate event: Abaxx had just promoted strong growth (record May 2026 volumes, LNG activity) via press release on June 1. Viceroy’s bearish report landed 10 days later, challenging the bullish narrative. Classic activist short tactic to generate scrutiny/downward pressure.
Evidence of coordination or alignment? Viceroy & Anson Funds (Admitted Research Discussions)
In December 2024, amid a Bloomberg article by Tom Schoenberg on short sellers’ “secret talks and alliances” in a court battle, Viceroy publicly responded:
“In our ‘secret talks’ with Tom ahead of his article, we asked him what stocks exactly we were ‘accused’ of discussing with other financial professionals. We have no idea what ideas we discussed with Anson. Tom could not provide an answer either.”
Viceroy (via founder Fraser Perring) later clarified they have never had a 'financial relationship' with Anson Funds but “have discussed a few items on our published research” with them. This was in the context of broader allegations of short-seller coordination. A 2022 DOJ probe also scrutinized multiple short sellers and allies, including Viceroy and Anson Funds, for potential abuses.
This shows some level of information-sharing/coordination on research topics between Viceroy and Anson, even if limited and denied as improper or financial.
Viceroy/Myles (Public Amplification Rapid Alignment)
Myles engaged almost immediately after the report (in a thread on June 11, 2026): He referenced “the findings,” with his own 30minute Claude session noted a “long track record of involvement in questionable projects,” went short a small (0.1%) position, and recommended caution for holders.
Myles denied formal ties, stating only “respect for their work” and that his effort was casual (half an hour reviewing old companies after seeing the report) yet timing was sus.
3. Links to (redacted)
They fit the same fintwit amplification network and was confirmed to have sent 6 individual DMs references to the research to shareholders with associated FUD: also linked to Myles.
Viceroy (team incl. Gabe) initiated the Abaxx attack with a detailed bearish report timed after the company’s positive volume announcement, causing an immediate 13.8% drop. Myles provided rapid public amplification via his own analysis and short position. Viceroy has admitted limited research discussions with Anson Funds (Dec 2024 context). This forms a chain of alignment around negative corporate commentary which has drawn DOJ/FCA scrutiny for potential collusion or market manipulation in the past. Viceroy’s own posts acknowledge the perception of “secret talks.
Anatomy of a 🩳 short and distort “conspiracy” (fact, not theory):
Step one: price goes up
Step two: short sellers short without thinking too much, CEO is on Twitter and it “must be a retail promote”..hedge fund admittedly doesn’t know what a clearinghouse or a verifiable credential is
Step three: ~half of all volume for better parts of full months is short selling and bid whacking, stuffing PR opens and failing to deliver etc, but price doesn’t go down much, so they solicit Canadian bank sales desks and the HF street in a flimsy “idea” to join the short, focusing a lot of the pitch on personally attacking the CEO (‘cause again, they don’t actually understand anything about the business).
Step four: CEO calls out the “short selling conspiracy” early, often, warning shareholders of unnatural volatility—I take a lot of flak for it (morons keep saying I’m “blaming short sellers for his stock price”…nope, that’s part of their information game, to make the CEO sound like a conspiracy theorist looking for a boogieman, when if you read the actual damn tweets I’m just calling it [correctly] how I see as it’s paying out and warning shareholders)
Step five: [criminal?] hedge fund solicits a lap dog for the dirty work of actually publishing a “hit piece” (I think multiple, but one finally takes the bone)
Step six: the “reverse newsletter pump and dump” starts, ‘short and distort insiders’ who know it’s coming start popping up in social media and chat boards, can’t help themselves but to front run the report (either their ego needs to be seen in social media so they leak their information, or they start a position, or both).
Step seven. CEO plants some information into the swamp just to make sure (lap dog eats it up).
Step eight. The idiot conspiracy is finally revealed, even less professional, more slop and full of ad hominem geared to “retail” than expected…some Morgan Stanley client who has been shorting consistently for a month is immediately on the cover bid (but instead of calling it a reverse pump and dump, let’s use Andrew Left’s words, a “risk managment” cover at market open after the report 😂)
..some step down the line, rats all turn on each-other when the failed reverse pump and dump (short and distort) ends up in court, someone else goes to jail hopefully (don’t worry Mr. S, I’m keeping a personal piggy bank set aside on this one to help that happen)