If it was so obvious to you fellas when and where the fake was, you'd all be typing from your desert islands. It's mostly bluster and talk. None of you can tell what's real and what aint, you just know that sometimes its bs and sometimes it's not.
The Flipper as you lot call him was nothing more than an exceptionally big, exceptionally brave trader. Period. There is no other explanation to him than that. There is absolutely nothing at all that suggests he ever did anything illegal at all. If you have evidence his orders couldn't be hit, then please let us know and we can ask the exchange to investigate. There are however other big traders where it seems there orders are not at risk, especially in the market I trade, the Emini SP. However, I haven't tried to hit them to prove this yet because i don't have the size to, but one day i will. If you watch the Emini you will one big trader, who is well known in the States, for all the wrong reasons, flash 4,000 on the bid to get filled on the offer... I presume... and vice versa. I guess you guys would call him a flipper since he flips between spoofing the bid and offer, but i just call him a big bstrd. If those orders are not 100% and my presumption is they are not, then that is highly illegal. Either way it doesn't effect me if he flashes these orders. In the milliseconds he is putting and pulling these orders I simply wouldn't have the time to be spoofed out by them even if I was as lily livered as that. And no everything does NOT go. I have told you guys what is unacceptable by law and what isn't. If you have any proof what so ever of quicker HFT systems front running, or orders not being at risk then that guy is in a hell of a lot of trouble. PS The friend I know is not on good terms with Rotter. They used to work together but fell out, so i certainly wouldn't have any agenda in defending him. I just have yet to see a good argument that he ever did anything wrong.
Just to clarify - I have nothing against the way anyone (including Paul Rotter for that matter) trades, as long as they follow exchange rules. (And in the case of the flipper that has been challenged many times, and Eurex has allowed him to continue, which tells me he does!) OP asked for a possible explanation of price behavior - and that is all I provided, without judgement.