Your Money Is at Risk if You Don't Follow Trends: An Interview with Evgeny Kogan on Cryptocurrencies, Investments and Financial Literacy

What stage of your career do you consider key?

All stages are important. Experience is years of work and trials. I have been working in the financial markets both in Russia and on global platforms for about 33 years. During this time, I have lived through crises and many instructive situations. There have been many things over the years. And the media business is nothing new to me. Back in the 90s of the last century, I wrote columns for newspapers. I have created different types of businesses more than once. All this is experience — both an understanding of the market and the ability to build a business.

There are many sharp turns in your biography: Israel, returning to Russia, working with second-tier stocks, the 2008 crisis. Which of these stages was the most valuable professionally?

One of these was moving to Israel, which in itself was a significant change in life. My specialization in the field of investments also arose unexpectedly: initially, I was an auditor studying accounting and business analysis at the institute. I mastered many new topics while living and working abroad. Among the significant events, I can also highlight how I learned to invest at Benzing. This experience was literally gained on the go — in the midst of specific mergers and acquisitions. This was the case with the beginning of serious work on investments in Russia, and with the creation of Antanta Capital. And here is today: the beginning of work in the development sphere in Dubai is also a kind of turn. Although, on the other hand, this is just another way of effective investments.

How do you assess the modern Russian startup and investment market? Does it have potential for growth, despite geopolitical difficulties?

This area is extremely interesting. In Russia, it is not so well developed, I mean startups and the entire structure of this business. In countries like the USA and Israel, this is already a huge industry, where there is everything: from many professional investors specializing in this segment, to funds, government guarantees and a special tax policy. There is a well-established flow of various investment rounds and much more. This also exists in Russia, but we do not yet have such a large-scale, conveyor-belt business as there. However, these areas are developing. Investment platforms are being created, and the state is actively involved in this process.

What do you think about the Uzbek market in this segment? Which areas are the most promising?

Uzbekistan has made significant strides in developing its investment climate and startup ecosystem in recent years. Reforms aimed at liberalizing the economy, digitalization, tax breaks and supporting entrepreneurship are creating favorable conditions for business growth. Despite this, the market is still in its infancy and lacks venture capital depth, mature funds and a large number of mentors. The prospects for the Uzbek startup market are good. With the growing interest in digital technologies, fintech and e-commerce, new investments are being attracted. However, high-quality growth requires the development of venture financing, more active participation of the state and private capital, and the attraction of international investors. Strengths of the Uzbek market: fintech and digital payments — with the growth of non-cash payments and the development of banking infrastructure; e-commerce and logistics, especially in light of the increase in online shopping; agrotech and food technologies, given the country's great agricultural potential; educational technologies (EdTech) — there is a high demand for quality education in the region; green energy and sustainable development — a global trend, in which Uzbekistan can become a significant player. In general, Uzbekistan is a young market with great potential, but its development requires investment, expertise and time.

How do you feel about criticism of the crypto market — volatility, fraud, regulatory risks? What needs to be done to make cryptocurrencies part of the mainstream?

The cryptocurrency market has become an integral part of our lives. Many people have crypto wallets in which they keep stablecoins, bitcoin or ether. On the other hand, most of the population is not yet sufficiently involved in the sphere. Since the market is young and dynamically developing, it is inevitably accompanied by volatility, fraud and regulatory risks. There is one problem with 2025 — we entered it at the very highs. By Trump's inauguration, Bitcoin reached another ATH (all-time high). Many altcoins, such as Solana, were also trading at historical highs. At the same time, liquidity in the market has not increased, the M2 money supply aggregator in the US is below the 2022 values. If there is no easing of the US monetary policy, then current prices are already at the limit. It is also worth considering that American stock indices have not undergone any significant correction and are setting records almost every day. All this is happening against the backdrop of high inflation in the US and the tightening of the Fed's rhetoric. That is, there will most likely be no rapid rate cuts in 2025. Add Trump's trade wars to this and you get a very shaky structure. As the one-time decline of NASDAQ on the news about the Chinese artificial intelligence DeepSeek on January 27 showed (then the index lost about 3 percent in one session), any little thing can scare traders. And if the main indices go into a serious correction, the crypto will fall much more. Trump also did a disservice to crypto by launching the TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins. Not only did these assets themselves fall sharply, but the practice of launching memecoins by public figures became normal for some time. As a result, we see scam tokens almost every day, launched by bloggers, politicians, and even entire countries (for example, the Central African Republic). The quintessence of all this was the advertisement of the LIBRA token by the President of Argentina, Javier Miley. LIBRA turned out to be a real scam, on which a lot of people lost money. All this greatly undermined the reputation of the crypto market. Not only memecoins suffered, but also serious projects like XRP. By the way, the latter is the most interesting in terms of prospects. Ripple should become a full-fledged competitor to SWIFT. However, the current capitalization of XRP at $160 billion also raises questions. It is possible that in the future we will see the price of XRP much lower.

You position Bitkogan as an analytical and educational media. Does monetization through advertising and paid courses interfere with this mission?

This problem does exist. If you run a business without thinking about finances, you can limit yourself to creating something just for yourself, without resorting to advertising and without selling your products. But a business must generate income and remain profitable. For us, it is both our soul — something that is incredibly interesting to us, and a source of income. If we have developed a truly unique and useful course, why not advertise it on our platforms? I try to approach advertising materials wisely and act judiciously, without going overboard with them. In a word, it is not easy. Once you start selling something, trust can weaken. What to do in such a situation? Remain honest with yourself and try to find a balance between business goals and sincerity.

What do you think is the main mistake newbies make in cryptocurrencies? And how can you avoid it?

This mistake is made not only by newbies in cryptocurrencies, but also by those who are just starting to invest. Haste makes waste. Never rush into a deal. Think more, then nothing will escape you. Read less press, but delve more into the essence of the processes, dig deeper. Don't turn the stock market into a casino, because these are completely different things.

If you had to start from scratch, which path would you choose: investments, education or media?

Media without real knowledge turns into infogypsyism. Having read a couple of books, hired specialists, competently built marketing, you can quickly become a “great guru”. There are plenty of such examples. But I believe that for real development you need to become an extra professional in your chosen field. Only when you thoroughly know your profession and have real experience, you can teach and show yourself as an expert in the media space. I do not believe in everything else.