Japan | News

Tokyo bond traders have a new number burned into their screens this week, 3.5%. For most of the past two decades, Japan’s long end was the place the world went to forget about interest rates. If you were a pension fund trying to match liabilities, a bank trying to park liquidity, or a global macro […] The post Bitcoin faces a “liquidity drain” danger zone as Japan’s 30-year yield breaks a historic record appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Japan will supply Ukraine with 66 units of technical equipment for frontline regions under the Emergency Recovery and Reconstruction Project supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Japan’s finance minister signaled that crypto’s future lies inside regulated exchanges as Japan advances tax, disclosure and market reforms. Japan appears to be moving to bring cryptocurrencies deeper into its traditional market rulebook, signaling that regulators want digital assets handled through established exchanges and securities-style oversight rather than a parallel system. The direction was underscored on Monday by Finance Minister and Financial Services Minister Satsuki Katayama, who publicly backed traditional securities exchanges and market infrastructure as the primary gateway for blockchain-based assets.  Speaking at the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s New Year opening ceremony, Katayama framed 2026 as Japan’s first year of full-scale digitalization. Her remarks echoed a broader regulatory shift that has been steadily aligning crypto with traditional capital markets.  Read more

Japan has transferred approximately EUR 47.7 million to support Ukraine’s reconstruction and agreed to launch a new phase of the Emergency Recovery Program.

Japan’s ruling coalition has released its 2026 tax reform blueprint, outlining a potential shift in how cryptocurrencies are treated under the country’s tax system, according to a CoinPost report. The post Japan’s 2026 Tax Reform Blueprint Maps Out New Framework for Crypto Assets: Report  appeared first on Cryptonews.

Fourteen people were injured in a stabbing attack in a factory in central Japan during which an unspecified liquid was also sprayed, an emergency services official said on Friday. “Fourteen people are subject to transportation by emergency services,” Tomoharu Sugiyama, a firefighting department official in the city of Mishima in the Shizuoka region, told AFP. He said a call was received at about 4.30pm (12:30pm PKT) from a nearby rubber factory saying “five or six people were stabbed by someone” and that a “spray-like liquid” had also been used. Japanese media, including public broadcaster NHK, reported that police had arrested a man on suspicion of attempted murder. The seriousness of the injuries was unknown, although NHK said all victims remained conscious. Sugiyama said at least six of the 14 victims had been sent to a hospital in a fleet of ambulances. The exact nature of the injuries was also unclear. The factory in Mishima is run by Yokohama Rubber Co., whose business includes manufacturing tyres for t...

Groeiende onzekerheid over Amerikaanse digitale diensten leidt in Europa tot een zoektocht naar een nieuwe bondgenoot. Japan is interessant, maar moet een grote inhaalslag maken.

The Bank of Japan tightened policy on Dec. 18, lifting its benchmark rate to 0.75%, the highest since 1995. Governor Kazuo Ueda framed the move as a formal break with the “ultra-accommodative” regime that has helped fuel global risk-taking for decades. Following the news, Bitcoin was little changed near $87,800, but the calm surface belies […] The post Japan’s rate hike ends the ‘free money’ era and puts Bitcoin on notice appeared first on CryptoSlate.

BTC rose to $88,000 after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates. The increase, seen as a potential risk-off trigger, failed to spark a flight into the yen.

Bitcoin headed higher despite the Bank of Japan's interest-rate hike while reactions saw bullish risk-asset signals and no further policy tightening. Bitcoin (BTC) aimed for $88,000 on Friday after Japan’s central bank raised interest rates to 30-year highs. Key points: Bitcoin joins US stocks futures heading higher in a curiously bullish reaction to Japan’s interest-rate hike. Read more

Japan's anticipated rate hike to 0.75% threatens to reverse global liquidity flows that have supported Bitcoin, with analysts warning that carry trade unwinding could pressure prices as the BOJ simultaneously plans to sell ¥83 trillion in accumulated ETFs starting January 2026. The post Bitcoin Price Prediction: Japan’s Next Rate Hike Could Flip the Global Risk Trade – Is Bitcoin the Big Winner? appeared first on Cryptonews.

The Bank of Japan is expected to increase its benchmark interest rates on Friday, a historically bearish signal for riskier assets like Bitcoin. Bitcoin (BTC) could face a continued correction toward the $70,000 level if the Bank of Japan (BoJ) proceeds with an expected interest-rate hike on Dec. 19, according to multiple macro-focused analysts. Key takeaways: BoJ tightening could pressure Bitcoin by draining global liquidity. Read more

A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of northern Japan on Friday, the weather office said, days after an even larger tremor shook the region and injured at least 50. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) upgraded Friday’s quake to magnitude 6.7 and warned that tsunami waves of up to one metre (three feet) could hit the northern Pacific coastline. In the end, waves of up to 20 centimetres were recorded on the main northern island of Hokkaido and in the Aomori region, the JMA said, before the tsunami advisory was lifted. Broadcaster NHK said there was no obvious change at either of the ports where the waves hit. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) also said that the quake measured 6.7 and was 130 kilometres (81 miles) off the city of Kuji in Iwate prefecture on the main island of Honshu. NHK said that the level of shaking was less than the bigger 7.5 tremor late on Monday, which knocked items off shelves, tore apart roads, smashed windows and triggered tsunami waves of up to 70 centimetres. In the ...

Japan plans to move crypto regulation from payments law to securities rules, tightening disclosures for IEOs and cracking down on unregistered platforms. Japan’s financial regulators are preparing to move crypto asset oversight out of the country’s payments regime and into a framework designed for investment and securities markets. The Financial Services Agency (FSA) on Wednesday released a comprehensive report from the Financial System Council’s Working Group on the regulatory status of cryptocurrencies across multiple sectors. The document outlines a plan to shift the legal basis for crypto regulation from the Payment Services Act (PSA) to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA), which is the primary law regulating securities markets, issuance, trading and disclosures. Read more

Japan has scrambled jets to monitor Russian and Chinese air forces conducting joint patrols around the country, the Japanese defence ministry said late Tuesday, amid rising tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. Two Russian Tu-95 nuclear-capable strategic bombers flew from the Sea of Japan toward the East China Sea to rendezvous with two Chinese H-6 bombers, and performed a “long-distance joint flight” in the Pacific, the ministry said. Four Chinese J-16 fighter jets joined the bombers as they made a round-trip flight between Japan’s Okinawa and Miyako islands, it added. The Miyako Strait between the two islands is classified as international waters. Japan also detected simultaneous Russian air force activity in the Sea of Japan, consisting of one early-warning aircraft A-50 and two Su-30 fighters, the ministry said. Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said in a post on X on Wednesday that the Russian and Chinese joint operations were “clearly intended as a show of force against our nation, which is a ser...

Japan’s FSA is set to mandate liability reserves for crypto exchanges to boost consumer protection. The new rules are set to change the market. Japan is in the process of introducing significant changes to cryptocurrency regulation following renewed attention to Mt. Gox-related repayment activity in 2024. The Financial Services Agency (FSA) plans to introduce new rules requiring cryptocurrency exchanges to maintain special “liability reserves” to protect customers if their assets are lost due to hacks or unauthorized transfers. The measures aim to bring the cryptocurrency sector closer to the strict standards applied to traditional financial institutions in Japan, one of the world’s most heavily regulated markets. Read more

The Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) on Monday reported a 7.6 magnitude earthquake off the coast of its eastern Aomori prefecture. The JMA reported that the epicentre of the quake was registered off the coast of Aomori at a depth of 80 kilometres at 11:15pm local time (7:15pm PKT). On Japan’s 1-7 scale of seismic intensity, the tremor registered as an “upper 6” in Aomori prefecture — a quake strong enough to make it impossible to keep standing or move without crawling. In such tremors, most heavy furniture can collapse and wall tiles and windowpanes are damaged in many buildings. Tsunami warnings were issued for the prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori and Iwate, and tsunamis from 20 to 70 cm (7 to 27 inches) high were observed at several ports, JMA said. Japanese public broadcaster NHK World reported that a tsunami warning had been issued 10 minutes later, urging citizens along the northeast coast to evacuate. Waves were estimated to reach a height of three metres. There have been no reports of casualties, bu...

Het Nederlands elftal treft Japan, Tunesië en de winnaar van de Europese play-off (Oekraïne, Polen, Zweden of Albanië) tijdens het WK voetbal van volgend jaar in de Verenigde Staten, Canada en Mexico. Dat werd vrijdagavond bekend in het John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, waar bondscoach Ronald Koeman en directeur topvoetbal Nigel de Jong aanwezig waren namens de KNVB.

Het Nederlands elftal is vrijdag bij de loting van het WK van 2026 gekoppeld aan Japan. Ook Tunesië en een land uit een Europese play-off kwamen in Washington uit de koker voor het toernooi in de Verenigde Staten, Canada en Mexico.

Indian crypto holders now hold 5 tokens on average, Ripple secures regulatory approval in Singapore, and Japan’s crypto tax: Asia Express The average crypto holder on the popular Indian crypto exchange CoinDCX is starting to diversify their portfolio, according to recent survey results. The Indian crypto investor today holds an average of 5 tokens per portfolio, CoinDCX said in an annual report released on Thursday. Its survey indicates the average investor in India has almost doubled the range of crypto tokens they hold, up from around two to three tokens in 2022. CoinDCX said that investors are increasingly exploring the potential of other blockchain networks rather than focusing solely on Bitcoin. Read more