TOKYO, (Reuters) – International casino operators have welcomed an agreement by Japan’s ruling coalition over key points needed to finalise legislation of large “integrated” resorts, which are expected to generate billions of dollars for the country and the industry.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner reached agreement this week on points from tax rates to casino floor space – closely watched by operators as they calibrate the potential size of investments in the country.
Japan legalised casinos in late 2016 after years of delay and still needs further legislation passed to set out how resort locations and operators will be selected and how the industry regulated.
But it faces a stiff task in passing the law in the current session of parliament, which runs to June 20, political sources said, potentially further delaying the opening of the first resorts.
Despite the potential for further delays, US and Macau-based casino operators jockeying to win the first licenses told Reuters they were largely satisfied with the coalition deal.
“They are heading in the right direction, and we remain highly enthusiastic about the Japan opportunity,” said William Shen, managing director of Korea and Japan at Caesars Entertainment Corp.
Japan, home to a large, wealthy population and attracting record numbers of foreign tourists, is seen by operators as one of the great untapped casino markets.
The last major greenfields opportunity in Asia was Singapore more than a decade ago and has generated significant revenues for the two casino operators there.
Just two Japanese casinos could bring in more than $10 billion in annual revenue, analysts have forecast. That potential market has sparked intense interest from US-based Las Vegas Sands Corp, MGM Resorts International and a host of other firms.
In the biggest win for casino operators, casino floor space in Japan will be capped at 3 percent of the total area of the resorts – large-scale projects hosting casinos, retail and conference space. An absolute upper limit of 15,000-square-metres had been floated by the junior Komeito party.
