Shigeru Ishiba calls Bitcoin a once-in-a-century opportunity at WebX 2025

Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Bitcoin and crypto are a “once-in-a-century opportunity” at the WebX 2025 conference in Tokyo, framing Web3 as a tool to address Japan’s regional stagnation, aging workforce, and population decline. He pledged stronger government support for the digital asset ecosystem and highlighted planned 2026 tax reforms that could make crypto taxation more competitive. The article suggests that a friendlier tax regime could attract more institutional capital into Japan’s crypto market, though the details remain uncertain and Ishiba previously showed caution on Bitcoin reserve holdings. For Bitcoin, the main market implication is improved policy tone from a major economy, which supports longer-term adoption sentiment.