Automated market maker

An automated market maker prices swaps from the ratio of assets in a pool using a fixed formula, with no order book and no discretionary quoting. Its determinism is what makes sandwich attacks reliably profitable.

Also known as AMM. manipulation techniques · updated 2026-11-06

Where does automated market maker come up?

This term is used in the following manipulation techniques, each explained in full on its own page.

• Sandwich attacks and MEV — A sandwich attack places one transaction immediately before a victim's pending swap and another immediately after it, moving the pool price so that the victim trades at a worse rate and the attacker keeps the difference.

See also

• Liquidity pool — A liquidity pool is a smart contract holding two or more assets against which traders swap, with prices set by a formula rather th…
• Sandwich attack — A sandwich attack places one transaction immediately before a victim's pending swap and another immediately after it, moving the p…

Terms that refer here

Liquidity pool · Sandwich attack

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