While everyone keeps have individual opinions and speculations on the next prices of cryptos, especially on the next altcoin season, I'll say we are moving nowhere because of price manipulation by exchanges. The actions of some exchanges is dropping the prices of tokens unnaturally and these affects market and industry confidence. How can we attract new money into the market when top wash trading exchanges like Bitforex and Bibox still exists and deceives people freely?
I don't need to add links to prove, but just google these exchanges and add the wash trading to your search term, you'll be marvelled at the results you'll find.
We can't. Wash trading is going to continue to happen regardless of what users do.
All that we can do is look out for obvious signs as traders, and simply stop using exchanges that demonstrate shady behaviour like wash trading, faking volumes, and manipulating or propping up token/coin values. There is nothing else within our power that can be done, really.
The signs are not always that obvious either which makes it much more difficult. It's just something that you have to live with really anytime you use a centralised exchange, that statistics may be fixed and so may the markets.