The Japanese lawmakers all set to vote for the IR bill

The IR implementation bill could promptly get an assent as the Japanese lawmakers are all set to vote for the IR bill and come to a conclusion whether to permit two or six cities to host venues.

After considerable lobbying by the casino industry for regulations in Japan over a decade, lawmakers are finally ready to take a step ahead for the IR implementation bill. The upcoming debate centres the parties of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, proposing up to six cities and its Komeito coalition partner, wanting only two be permitted to host casinos.

According to an executive from a US operator, “The operators had been expecting to compete in at most two all-or-nothing beauty parades for the first licences, but could now find themselves in a more strategic chase around regional Japan.” The market could emerge into the second largest after Macau, as it would potentially reach revenues between €12.1 billion and €20.3 billion, solely depending on which plan gets approved.

A Financial Times source close to Komeito politicians said: “This is a meeting that will have a lot of moving parts, and a number of issues like tax rates, entrance fees and the physical size of casino floors will be subject to horse-trading. Probably the biggest haggle is going to be over the number of licences. The LDP is going to come in very aggressively with a proposal for either five or six licenses. In the end, I think they will walk away very happy if that is bargained down to three.”