In the past few hours (from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Beijing time), the global capital markets have been holding their breath, waiting for a decision: will the Bank of Japan really raise interest rates this time?

The market has already bet on a 94% chance — a rate hike is almost certain. But now, the loudest debate is no longer about "whether" to raise rates. What everyone truly cares about is: after this rate hike, will the Bank of Japan continue to follow suit? How aggressive will the pace be? That’s where the real disagreement lies.

So the question now is: will a rate hike by the Bank of Japan cause the entire global market (including crypto assets) to collapse?

Honestly, probably not in the short term. The market has been discussing this for nearly half a year and has already digested most of the information, so it’s unlikely to cause a sudden shock. What could really crash the market are unexpected surprises that no one anticipated. This time is different — everyone is mentally prepared.

But this event is indeed very significant. It marks the moment when the world’s last major economy clinging to ultra-low interest rates finally begins to tighten. From a long-term perspective, the era of "cheap money" globally is gradually coming to an end. For risk assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum, the days ahead require more caution. The era of "buying anything and it will go up" is over.