The Bank of Japan recently revealed a harsh reality — they want to raise interest rates but lack the courage to do so quickly.

The numbers disclosed at the meeting speak volumes: even with the policy rate raised to 0.75%, the real interest rate remains negative. In other words, this is not tightening at all, just a loosening policy dressed in a new guise.

Internal proposals are also very frank: raise rates symbolically every few months, gradually inch forward. The underlying message is nothing more than — we are still far from the neutral interest rate, moving too fast would hurt the economy. Rather than a rate hike cycle, it’s more like a delaying tactic. The yen can’t withstand it, and the economy can’t bear it either; they can only test the waters while moving forward, worried about a crash along the way.

Don’t be fooled by the words "rate hike." Japan’s fundamental problems have never been solved; they’ve just been buried under the passage of time.

For the crypto world, the impact is very direct: the Bank of Japan can only raise rates at a snail’s pace, meaning the last remaining ultra-loose central bank in the world is still in the game. As long as the yen carry trade channels are not shut down, dollar liquidity will be hard to truly tighten. For liquidity assets like BTC and ETH, a pullback doesn’t mean the end — it’s more like a washout.