Built for founders, not institutions
Wachsman’s strength is regulatory and corporate communications for banks, payments firms and large protocols. Shilika is built for founders who need a story placed fast, with senior judgment on every pitch.
Compare/Crypto & Web3 PR
Shilika Jain vs Wachsman: institutional advisory or a senior operator?
Wachsman is one of the first crypto PR firms, founded in New York in 2015 and now a global advisory with clients like Visa, DBS, Ripple and Solana. Shilika Jain is a senior fractional operator who pitches personally across the US, China, Korea, Japan, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. They solve different problems, at very different prices.
The short version
Choose Wachsman if you are an institution or late-stage protocol that needs regulatory, crisis and investor communications across the US and Europe. Choose Shilika if you are a Web3 or AI startup that wants tier-1 crypto and mainstream coverage plus Korea, Japan, China and the Gulf, with a senior operator on every pitch, for $3K–$7K a month.
At a glance
Who pitches
- Wachsman
- Senior consultants lead; account managers and staff run daily outreach
- Shilika Jain
- Shilika, on every pitch
Monthly cost
- Wachsman
- Confidential (reported from $15K/mo)
- Shilika Jain
- $3K–$7K retainer
Native markets
- Wachsman
- 3 of 8 we track
- Shilika Jain
- 7 of 8 we track
Firms to manage
- Wachsman
- 1, plus regional agencies for gaps
- Shilika Jain
- 1 operator, 1 plan
The difference
What Shilika handles that Wachsman leaves to you
North Asia and the Gulf, natively
Wachsman covers the US, Europe and Singapore. Shilika adds Korea, Japan, China and the Gulf, where much of crypto’s trading volume and community attention sits.
A fraction of the retainer
Enterprise retainers from about $15K a month pay for a multi-office firm. Shilika runs tier-1 crypto PR for $3K–$7K a month.
Side by side
Wachsman vs Shilika Jain, line by line
Filter by what matters most to you. On mobile, each row stacks.
WachsmanShilika Jain
Who does the work
Who pitches the journalistSenior consultants lead the account. Account managers and staff handle day-to-day outreach.Shilika, personally. The person on the intro call is the person writing the pitch and following up with the editor.
Senior time on your accountPartial. Partner time goes mainly to the largest institutional accounts.100%. Six years running Web3 and AI PR, including building CoinMarketCap’s APAC PR function and leading PR at Myosin.
What you getCorporate, regulatory, crisis and investor communications, plus events.Narrative, tier-1 pitching, embargo strategy, founder profiling, op-eds, KOL waves and APAC localisation from one operator.
Media reach
Journalist networkStrong institutional, financial and US crypto press.400+ working journalists across the US, China, Korea, Japan, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, plus 200+ vetted Web3 KOLs.
Where they are strongestUS, Europe and Singapore.Global by design: US crypto and tech press plus native-language desks across North Asia, Southeast Asia, India and the Gulf.
China, Korea, Japan, Middle EastSingapore office. No stated Korea, Japan, China or Gulf media teams.Direct, in-language relationships: BloomingBit and TokenPost (Korea), CoinPost and CryptoTimes (Japan), ChainCatcher (China), Gulf business press.
Cost & contract
Typical monthly costConfidential. Reported from about $15K a month for enterprise retainers.$3K–$7K a month retainer, or a $15K–$40K launch sprint for a TGE, mainnet or raise.
Where the fee goesA multi-office team, senior advisory time and institutional-grade overhead.Senior strategy and execution. No account-management layer, no agency markup on junior hours.
ContractCustom retainers sized to budget.Bounded engagements tied to named outlets and dates. Month-to-month after the first cycle.
Strategy & speed
Cross-market strategyCoordinated across its own offices. North Asia and the Gulf would need partners.One narrative, sequenced across every market from a single plan, so the Korean story and the CoinDesk story reinforce each other.
Speed to first pitchInstitutional onboarding and approvals before outreach.Pitching inside the first week. No onboarding team, no internal hand-offs.
Interactive
Your markets, your budget, your call
Pick the markets your launch needs. The tool shows where Wachsman has in-house reach, where you would need a second firm, and what each route costs over the engagement.
01 Pick the markets your launch needs
02 See who can actually reach them
MarketWachsmanShilika
United StatesNativeNative
South KoreaGapNative
JapanGapNative
Southeast AsiaNativeNative
To reach South Korea and Japan, you would likely add 1 more agency next to Wachsman, plus the time it takes to keep their messaging in sync. With Shilika it is one operator and one plan.
03 Compare what it costs
$141K
kept in your runway over 6 months
82%
lower spend, with a senior operator on every pitch
Agency figures use the public or reported range for Wachsman ($15K–$30K/mo) and are estimates. Move the sliders to match the proposal in front of you.
Agencies already hire Shilika. You can skip the middle.
When an agency wins a client that needs Korean, Japanese, Chinese or Gulf coverage and it has no desk there, it subcontracts the work. Shilika is regularly that subcontractor. Hiring her directly means the same relationships and the same pitches, without an agency margin on top or a strategy that gets relayed second-hand.
Fair is fair
What Wachsman does well
- Website
- wachsman.com
- Headquarters
- New York
- Founded
- 2015
- Team
- Roughly 80–150 people; offices in the US, Dublin, London, Geneva and Singapore
- Pricing
- Confidential (reported from $15K/mo). Wachsman lists fees as confidential. Third-party lists report enterprise retainers from about $15K a month, and institutional crypto PR commonly runs $15K–$30K.
- Services
- Strategic communications, CEO advisory, Crisis and issues management, Investor relations, Transaction communications, Events and speaking, Digital capital markets practice
- Named clients
- Visa, DBS, Standard Chartered, Ripple, Solana, Parity, Hedera, Cardano, Ondo, Token2049
Strengths
- One of the earliest dedicated crypto communications firms
- Institutional and TradFi credibility, with clients such as Visa, DBS and Standard Chartered
- Multi-office reach across the US, Europe and Singapore
- Depth in crisis, regulatory and investor communications
Where founders hit limits
- Positioned for large players and multi-region institutional launches rather than lean startups
- Fees are confidential; third-party lists report enterprise retainers from about $15K a month
- No stated Korean, Japanese, Chinese or Middle East language teams
- Layered account teams, with account managers handling daily work
Decision
When Wachsman is enough, and when you need Shilika
Choose Wachsman if
- You are a bank, payments company or late-stage protocol
- You need regulatory, crisis or investor communications
- You want a multi-office firm across the US and Europe
- Your budget starts at $15K+ a month
Choose Shilika if
- You are launching a token, mainnet or raise and need tier-1 coverage in one news cycle
- Your community or exchange liquidity sits in Korea, Japan, China, Southeast Asia or the Gulf
- You want the senior person writing every pitch
- You are pre-Series B and want senior work at $3K–$7K a month
- You want one narrative across every market, not two agencies to referee
50+Web3 & AI protocols placed
400+journalists across 6 regions
11tier-1 placements in 24h (RARI Chain)
6 yrssenior Web3 & AI PR
“Her network is outstanding. Outlets that once felt out of reach became regular coverage, both in crypto and mainstream tech media.”
Gafoor Khan, Web3 & AI founder, advisor and angel investor
FAQ
Common questions about Wachsman and Shilika
Is Wachsman a good crypto PR agency for startups?
Wachsman is one of the most established crypto communications firms, with institutional clients like Visa, DBS and Ripple. It is built for large players. Early-stage Web3 and AI startups usually get more from a senior operator like Shilika Jain, who pitches personally at a startup price.
How much does Wachsman charge?
Wachsman lists its fees as confidential. Third-party lists report enterprise retainers starting around $15K a month. Shilika charges $3K–$7K a month, or $15K–$40K for a launch sprint.
Where does Wachsman have offices?
Its site lists New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington DC, Dublin, London, Geneva and Singapore.
Does Wachsman cover Korea and Japan?
Wachsman does not list Korean or Japanese media teams. Shilika has direct relationships with crypto media in both markets, including BloomingBit, TokenPost and CoinPost.
Skip the account team. Work with the operator.
Send your launch date and target markets. You get a reply within 24 hours with the outlets Shilika would go after first, in which order, and what it costs. Retainers run $3K–$7K a month; launch sprints run $15K–$40K.
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