Shaurya Malwa

Shaurya is the Co-Leader of the CoinDesk tokens and data team in Asia with a focus on crypto derivatives, DeFi, market microstructure, and protocol analysis.

Shaurya holds over $1,000 in BTC, ETH, SOL, AVAX, SUSHI, CRV, NEAR, YFI, YFII, SHIB, DOGE, USDT, USDC, BNB, MANA, MLN, LINK, XMR, ALGO, VET, CAKE, AAVE, COMP, ROOK, TRX, SNX, RUNE, FTM, ZIL, KSM, ENJ, CKB, JOE, GHST, PERP, BTRFLY, OHM,
BANANA, ROME, BURGER, SPIRIT, and ORCA.

He provides over $1,000 to liquidity pools on Compound, Curve, SushiSwap, PancakeSwap, BurgerSwap, Orca, AnySwap, SpiritSwap, Rook Protocol, Yearn Finance, Synthetix, Harvest, Redacted Cartel, OlympusDAO, Rome, Trader Joe, and SUN.

Recent advances in generative AI and machine learning have evolved technological communication to levels beyond what was previously comprehensible. The recent and rapid rise of Large Language Models (LLMs) which are now analysing and generating huge volumes of text outputs, prompts us to consider our progress so far and what this means for the future of human communication alongside the new agentic AI layer.

The third wave of AI will bring us to a pivotal moment in the evolution of work, where the emergence of autonomous agents promises to transform how humans and machines collaborate. For us, agentic AI represents the next frontier in this progression; a limitless digital workforce built on AI agents that can reason, take action, and integrate deeply within enterprise workflows. This innovation not only builds on the foundation of LLMs, but introduces a new agentic layer, enabling machines to move from generating insights to orchestrating and executing actions.

US equities have soared to their most expensive level relative to government bonds in a generation, amid growing nervousness among some investors over high valuations of megacap technology companies and other Wall Street stocks.

A record-breaking run for US equities, which hit a fresh high on Wednesday, has pushed the so-called forward earnings yield — expected profits as a percentage of stock prices — on the S&P 500 index down to 3.9 per cent, according to Bloomberg data. A sell-off in Treasuries has driven 10-year bond yields up to 4.65 per cent.

That means the difference between the two, a measure of the so-called equity risk premium, or the extra compensation to an investor for the risk of owning stocks, has fallen into negative territory and reached a level last seen in 2002 during the dotcom boom and bust.

“Investors are effectively saying ‘I want to own these dominant tech companies and I am prepared to do it without much of a risk premium,’” said Ben Inker, co-head of asset allocation at asset manager GMO. “I think that is a crazy attitude.”

Analysts said the US’s steep equity valuations, labelled the “mother of all bubbles”, were the result of fund managers clamouring for exposure to the country’s buoyant economic and corporate profits growth, as well as a belief among many investors that they cannot risk leaving the so-called Magnificent Seven tech stocks out of their portfolios.

“The questions we are getting from clients are, on the one hand, concerns about market concentration and how top heavy the market has become,” Inker said. “But, on the other side, people are asking ‘shouldn’t we just own these just dominant companies because they are going to take over the world?’”

The traditionally constructed equity risk premium is sometimes known as the “Fed model”, because Alan Greenspan appeared to refer to it at times when he was chair of the Federal Reserve.

However, the model has its detractors. A 2003 paper by Cliff Asness, founder of fund firm AQR, criticised the use of Treasury yields as an “irrelevant” nominal benchmark and said the equity risk premium failed as a predictive tool for stock returns.

Some analysts now employ an equity risk premium that compares stocks’ earning yield to inflation-adjusted US bond yields. On this reading, the equity risk premium is also “at its lowest level since the dotcom era”, said Miroslav Aradski, senior analyst at BCA Research, although it is not negative.

The premium could even understate how expensive stocks are, Aradski added, because it implicitly assumes that the earnings yield is a good proxy for the future real total return from equities.

Given that profit margins are above their historic average, if they were to “revert towards their historic norms, earnings growth could end up being very weak”, he said.

Some market watchers look to altogether different measures. Aswath Damodaran, professor of finance at the Stern School of Business at New York University, is sharply critical of the Fed model and said the right way to compute the equity risk premium was to use expectations of cash flows and cash payout ratios.

By his calculations, the equity risk premium has declined over the past 12 months and is close to its lowest level in the past 20 years, but is “definitely not negative”.

Equities’ valuation relative to bonds is just one measure of exuberance cited by managers. Others include US stocks’ price-to-earnings valuation against their own history or compared with stocks in other regions.

“There are quite a few red flags here that should make us a bit cautious,” said Chris Jeffery, head of macro at Legal & General’s asset management division. “The most uncomfortable one is the difference between the way that US equities and non-US equities are priced.”

Many investors argue that high multiples are justified and can be sustained. “It is undeniable that [US stocks’ price-to-earnings] multiple is high relative to history, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is higher than it should be, given the underlying environment,” said Goldman Sachs’ senior equity strategist Ben Snider.

On Goldman’s own model, which suggests what the PE ratio for the US blue-chip equity index should be, after taking account of the interest rate environment, labour market health and other factors, the S&P is “in line with our modelled fair value”, Snider said.

“The good news is that earnings are growing and, even with unchanged valuations, earnings growth should drive equity prices higher,” he added.

US stocks have now regained all the ground lost during a fall since December. That sell-off highlighted some investors’ concerns that there was a level of Treasury yields that the stock market rally could not live with, because bonds — a traditional haven asset — would appear so attractive.

Pimco’s chief investment officer said this week that relative valuations between bonds and equities “are about as wide as we’ve seen in a long time”, and the same policies that could take bond yields higher threatened to hit stocks.

For others, US stocks’ declining risk premium is just another reflection of investors piling into Big Tech stocks and the risk that concentration in a small number of big names poses to portfolios.

“Even though the momentum is strong on the Mag 7, this is the year where you want to be diversified on your equity exposure,” said Andrew Pease, chief investment strategist at Russell Investments.

U.S. authorities have indicted five people over their alleged involvement in a multi-year scheme that saw them obtain remote IT employment with dozens of American companies.

The Department of Justice on Thursday announced the indictment of North Korean citizens Jin Sung-Il and Pak Jin-Song; Pedro Ernesto Alonso De Los Reyes of Mexico, and U.S. nationals Erick Ntekereze Prince and Emanuel Ashtor.

The DOJ said the FBI arrested Ntekereze and Ashtor, and a search of Ashtor’s home in North Carolina found evidence of a “laptop farm” that hosted company-provided laptops to deceive organizations into thinking they had hired workers based in the U.S.

Alonso was also arrested in the Netherlands after a U.S. warrant was issued.

According to the indictment, Ntekereze and Ashtor allegedly installed remote access software, including Anydesk and TeamViewer, on the company-provided devices, allowing the North Koreans to conceal their locations. The two Americans also provided Jin and Pak with forged identity documents, including U.S. passports and U.S. bank accounts.

The indictment alleges that the defendants gained employment from at least 64 American organizations over the course of the multi-year scheme, which ran from April 2018 through August 2024. These included a U.S. financial institution, a San Francisco-based technology company, and a Palo Alto-headquartered IT organization.

According to the Justice Department, payments from ten of those companies generated at least $866,255 in revenue, most of which was laundered through a Chinese bank account. 

“The Department of Justice remains committed to disrupting North Korea’s cyber-enabled sanctions-evading schemes, which seek to trick U.S. companies into funding the North Korean regime’s priorities, including its weapons programs,” Devin DeBacker, supervisory official with the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said in a statement. 

Alongside Thursday’s indictments, which come just days after the Treasury Department sanctioned two individuals and four entities for allegedly engaging in similar behavior, the FBI released an advisory warning that North Korean IT workers are increasingly engaging in malicious activity, including data extortion.

The agency said it has observed North Korean IT workers leveraging unlawful access to company networks to “exfiltrate proprietary and sensitive data, facilitate cyber-criminal activities, and conduct revenue-generating activity on behalf of the regime.”

With $800 split across four standout cryptos, including Lightchain AI, traders could be on track for life-changing wealth by 2025.

The cryptocurrency market is teeming with opportunities for investors seeking life-changing returns. Strategic investments in smart projects can unlock massive potential, especially for those who act early.

With $800 divided among four standout cryptos, including Lightchain AI, traders could position for generational wealth by the end of 2025. Here’s why these projects stand out and how they could deliver exponential returns.

Cardano and Solana: Innovation and scalability

Cardano (ADA) and Solana (SOL) are top blockchain sites that focus on being bigger and faster. Cardano has the Ouroboros Proof-of-Stake (PoS) way, which puts safety and power savings first. The new Plomin hard fork brought in Plutus V3, and some rules for how it runs, helping with size and spreading out control. As of January 20, 2025, ADA is selling at $0.990262 USD, with a peak of $1. 12 USD and a low of $0. 964891 USD.

Solana joins Proof-of-History (PoH) with PoS for high speed and low wait time, dealing with nearly 65,000 deals each second. The start of Solana v2. 0 helped the network stay strong and work better. Right now, SOL sells at $232. 45 USD, with a peak of $293. 79 USD and a low of $231. 70 USD.

Lightchain AI: Transforming blockchain with AI integration

Lightchain AI is revolutionizing blockchain technology by integrating artificial intelligence to solve complex, real-world problems.

At its core is federated governance, a decentralized decision-making system that allows token holders to actively shape the platform’s development.

This ensures transparency, inclusivity, and community-driven innovation, setting Lightchain AI apart as a leader in blockchain advancement. Having already raised $12 million during its presale, the platform has attracted significant attention from investors and industry leaders.

Its roadmap focuses on expanding into key industries such as finance, healthcare, and logistics, showcasing its potential for long-term growth. With its smart approach and growing ecosystem, Lightchain AI is poised to make a lasting impact across multiple sectors.

Ripple’s XRP is transforming cross-border payments with a fast, reliable, and cost-effective solution, enabling value to move globally as easily as information today.

Traditional international transactions often face high costs, delays, and lack of transparency. Ripple tackles these issues with its On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) feature, using XRP as a bridge currency for real-time settlements and eliminating the need for pre-funded accounts. This reduces costs and boosts efficiency in global financial transactions.

As of writing, XRP is trading at $3.08 USD, down 0.05521% from the previous close, with an intraday high of $3.26 USD and a low of $2.90 USD. Recent analyses, including a report by JPMorgan, highlight Ripple and XRP’s potential to unlock value in cross-border payments, reinforcing their growing role in the financial sector.

To learn more about Lightchain AI, visit the official website, whitepaper, X, and Telegram.

TL;DR

• Dogecoin’s (DOGE) price remains volatile as anticipation builds around potential ETF approvals from firms like Bitwise and Osprey Funds.
• Bitcoin (BTC) has been hovering between $101,000 and $109,500 in the past few days, with the volatility likely driven by the political changes in the USA.
• The launch of TRUMP and MELANIA meme coins sparked massive hype, but recent drops and scam risks highlight the dangers involved with the niche.

DOGE on the Spotlight

The biggest meme coin drew the crypto community’s attention on January 21, when its price experienced a double-digit spike in a matter of minutes. The rally was fueled by the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E.), which featured the asset’s logo on its official website.

Dogecoin’s valuation surged to $0.40, but the rally was short-lived. Currently, it is worth around $0.36 (per CoinGecko’s data), while D.O.G.E.’s website removed the logo from its front page.

It is important to note that further announcements coming from the agency may continue to impact the token. After all, D.O.G.E. is led by Elon Musk, who is an outspoken advocate of the OG meme coin and often endorses it on X.

Despite its enhanced volatility, Dogecoin has been the subject of numerous bullish predictions lately. One of the biggest optimists is the popular analyst Ali Martinez, who envisioned the price exploding to $15. He based his prediction on the potential approval of Bitwise’s filing to launch a Dogecoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). 

The company submitted its application with the SEC on January 22, while prior to that, REX Advisors and Osprey Funds jointly filed to introduce an ETF that includes exposure to DOGE. 

BTC’s Rollercoaster 

The primary cryptocurrency also passed through severe turbulence in the past few days. It hit a new all-time high of almost $110,000 on January 20 (hours before Donald Trump’s inauguration) but fell to approximately $101,000 once the Republican officially became America’s 47th President. The plunge was likely caused by Trump’s speech, which did not include any comments about the crypto industry. 

In the following days, BTC continued to experience substantial volatility. On January 23, it spiked to $106,000 after US Senator Cynthia Lummis hinted that “big things are coming” for the asset. 

The crypto community speculated that the news could be related to the potential establishment of a strategic BTC reserve in the US. However, President Trump signed an executive order to review the creation of a “National Digital Asset Stockpile,” expanding the scope of the effort to other cryptocurrencies. 

In the aftermath, BTC’s price tumbled to $103,000 before rising to its current $105,300 (per CoinGecko’s data).

TRUMP and MELANIA

Lastly, we will touch upon some of the most trending meme coins lately: those issued by the US President and his wife. Official Trump (TRUMP) saw the light of day on January 18, and hours later, its market capitalization reached a whopping $14.5 billion. The surge was fueled by massive hype and support from leading exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase. 

America’s first lady also dived in, launching a meme coin called Melania Meme (MELANIA). Its market capitalization also soared into the billions, although it did not reach TRUMP’s dimensions.

However, both tokens have plunged significantly in the last few days, showcasing the unpredictable and volatile nature of the meme coin niche. In addition, scammers have supposedly created multiple fake websites offering dubious services with TRUMP and MELANIA, with the sole purpose of conning unsuspecting victims.

People who are about to enter the ecosystem should first do proper research and invest only as much as they are ready to lose.