Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi again denied approving or being involved in a recently launched cryptocurrency named after her, Sanae Token. U.Today reported she told a House of Representatives meeting she did not know the token existed. The issue has widened into a political controversy after links were raised to her chief press secretary Tsuyoshi Kinoshita, who acknowledged contacting operators tied to businessman Ken Matsui but said he thought the matter involved app points, not a cryptocurrency.

Veteran trader Peter Brandt said he is considering selling part of his bitcoin holdings and moving the money into gold. He said gold is likely to show clear strength versus bitcoin, citing a gold-bitcoin ratio chart he presented. Brandt has recently warned traders not to rule out further declines and said a tradable bottom may not appear before October. He has also maintained a long-term bullish target for bitcoin in 2029.