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Did Japan’s PM Actually Back the Memecoin Bearing Her Name?

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Japan’s SANAE TOKEN saga has entered a new phase, with fresh media reports alleging the prime minister’s office knew more than it admitted. But for crypto markets, the bigger story is what happens next in Tokyo’s legislature.

The political noise and the regulatory signal are arriving at exactly the same time.

How the Token Unraveled

SANAE TOKEN launched on Solana on Feb. 25, as BeInCrypto reported. NoBorder DAO — a community led by serial entrepreneur Yuji Mizoguchi — issued it as part of a “Japan is Back” initiative, with Takaichi’s name and likeness on the project website. The token surged over 40x on launch day before Takaichi’s March 2 denial triggered a 58% crash.

The FSA opened a probe into NoBorder DAO for operating without a crypto exchange license. The token’s operators halted issuance shortly after.

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The SANAE TOKEN website describes the token as “not just a meme, but the hope of Japan,” alongside a portrait of Prime Minister Takaichi and a timeline of her political career. Source: japanisbacksanaet.jp

Japanese Tabloid Reports Secretary’s Approval

Weekly Bunshun, a Japanese tabloid known for breaking political and celebrity scandals, says developer Ken Matsui told the magazine his team informed Takaichi’s office that the project was a crypto asset. That directly contradicts her March 2 denial. Takaichi said neither she nor her office had been told anything about the token.

The publication says it obtained audio recordings of Takaichi’s chief secretary over a period of more than 20 years, reportedly describing the project favorably. Another Japanese online media reported that Takaichi’s office had not responded to media inquiries on the matter as of Tuesday. Takaichi has held no press conference since February 18, when her second cabinet was inaugurated.

The political dimension remains unresolved. What matters for crypto is whether the scandal accelerates — or complicates — Japan’s regulatory overhaul.

FSA Bill Changes the Rules

Japan’s Financial Services Agency submitted its landmark crypto reform bill to parliament this week, Asahi Shimbun reported. The legislation moves crypto from the Payment Services Act into the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, reclassifying digital assets as financial instruments for the first time.

As BeInCrypto previously reported, the maximum prison term for unlicensed crypto sales would triple to 10 years, with fines rising from ¥3 million to ¥10 million. The SESC gains criminal investigation powers it has never held over crypto operators. The SANAE TOKEN case was explicitly cited in Nikkei’s reporting on the legislative push.

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The bill would also void transactions with unregistered operators by default, making it easier for investors to seek refunds — a provision directly relevant to the SANAE TOKEN case.

The post Did Japan’s PM Actually Back the Memecoin Bearing Her Name? appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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Crypto World

US Spot Bitcoin ETFs Hit Strongest Gains Since February

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US Spot Bitcoin ETFs Hit Strongest Gains Since February

US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have renewed the pace of inflows, recording their largest daily flows in weeks.

Spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs posted $471 million in inflows on Monday, the largest daily inflow since Feb. 25, when the funds attracted $507 million, according to SoSoValue.

The inflows came as the Bitcoin price briefly approached $70,000 before retreating below $69,000, according to CoinGecko data.

The volatility occurred amid ongoing geopolitical pressure as well as renewed concerns over Bitcoin’s quantum resistance, while the Crypto Fear & Greed Index remained in “Extreme Fear” at 13.

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BlackRock’s IBIT leads the inflows at $182 million

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) led the inflows with about $182 million, followed by the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) with $147 million, according to Farside data.

The ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) ranked third with nearly $119 million, marking its largest daily inflow since July 10, 2025.

On Monday, the blockchain analytics platform Arkham observed that ETF outflows slowed to a halt last week, with major issuers selling just about $16.6 million in Bitcoin. ARK Invest’s ARKB ETF purchased the most BTC, or $34 million in a week, it said.

Source: Arkham

Following the three trading sessions in April so far, US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded about $307 million in net inflows, bringing total assets under management (AUM) back above $90 billion.

Related: Strategy adds $330M BTC as paper losses top $14.5B in Q1

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In March, Bitcoin ETFs posted $1.3 billion in inflows, marking the first monthly gain after outflows of $1.61 billion in January and $207 million in February.

Ether ETFs record $120 million in inflows

US spot Ether (ETH) ETFs followed the recovery in sentiment on Monday, recording $120 million in inflows and offsetting $78 million in outflows from the prior two trading sessions.

Ether ETFs posted three consecutive months of losses, bringing total outflows for the period to about $770 million.

Other altcoin ETFs saw muted activity, with XRP (XRP) recording zero inflows on Monday, while Solana (SOL) ETFs posted about $247,000 in inflows.

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