Japan IRs to verify identity of big money players

The Experts’ Committee, which is setting up ground rules for the soon-to-be-launched Japanese integrated resorts, has proposed a mandatory requirement of verifying and confirming the identity of any player looking to buy chips worth JPY300,000 (US$2,650) or more. The committee also proposed that the maximum space a casino floor can occupy must be limited to 3 per cent of the total IR space. The panel also suggested a higher minimum size for hotel rooms in the nation’s IRs.

The panel also wants any transactions worth JPY1 million (US$8,830) to be reported to the Casino Management Committee—the IR oversight committee to be established next year.

The Japanese government will issue its decree in 2019 laying out the specific standards for IRs based on the Act on Promotion of Development of Specified Complex Tourist Facilities Area.