How is this legal? If they are buying options to force the markets to rise like this, isn't this blatant market manipulation? Or is this okay because they have a lot of money?
Do they have inside information? If not, they can buy and sell without having to have a specific intent.
Market manipulation is also separately illegal. Though classic pump and dump doesn’t seem possible with amzn.
Inside information doesn't have anything to do with market manipulation. The trader who caused the Flash Crash in 2010 was similarly prosecuted for artificially manipulating the markets. If Softbank was buying options to somehow manipulate the rest of their trades, I can't see how this isn't illegal.
2010 flash crash was due to spoofing. Here SB bought call options outright. Nothing illegal about that.
Their purchases were a tiny fraction of all market calls. How is that manipulative?