Japan’s new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, announced a package of economic stimulus measures on Tuesday to ease the impact of inflation on households. The move, some crypto observers say, could drive more capital into Bitcoin.
The stimulus measures include subsidies for electricity and gas charges, as well as regional grants to ease price pressure and encourage small to medium-sized businesses to raise wages.
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes viewed the development as a precursor to more fiat money printing by Japan’s central bank, a move that could catalyze Bitcoin’s (BTC) rise to $1 million.
“Translation: let’s print money to hand out to folks to help with food and energy costs,” said Hayes in a Tuesday X post, adding that this dynamic may see Bitcoin rise to $1 million, while triggering a rise in the Japanese yen.
Meanwhile, the yen fell to a one-week low on Tuesday after Takaichi took office as Japan’s first female prime minister, which was seen by investors as a mixed signal for the incoming interest rate decision in the country, Reuters reported.
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Takaichi’s “pro-stimulus” stance reignites hopes for QE pivot by Bank of Japan
Hayes previously predicted that the Bank of Japan’s pivot to quantitative easing (QE) may be the next significant catalyst for Bitcoin and risk assets.
QE refers to central banks purchasing bonds and injecting money into the economy to lower interest rates and stimulate spending during challenging financial conditions.
The BOJ’s next monetary policy meeting is set for Oct. 29. Most analysts expect the central bank to deliver a 0.75% interest rate hike by early 2026, with no clear consensus on the exact timeline, Reuters reported on Monday.
The central bank is currently engaged in quantitative tightening, with no clear reversal plans to switch to QE until it reaches its target inflation rate of 2%.
However, Takaichi’s “pro-stimulus stance” may soon “push Japan into easing,” as 80% of global banks already pursue QE efforts, according to macro investment resource Milk Road Macro’s Oct. 8 X post.
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Bitcoin whales turn bullish with new long positions after Bitcoin “flush” to $104,000
Meanwhile, whales, or large cryptocurrency investors, are signaling renewed appetite for Bitcoin, as Bitcoin’s price is recovering from its dip to a four-month low of $104,000 on Friday.
Three whales returned to decentralized exchange Hyperliquid on Wednesday, depositing tens of millions of dollars to initiate leveraged long positions, which use “borrowed” funds to increase the size of the investment.
Notably, whale wallet “0x3fce” increased his Bitcoin long position to $49.7 million, while whale wallet “0x89AB” opened a 6x leveraged long position worth $14 million, wrote blockchain data platform Lookonchain, in a Wednesday X post.
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