Casinos coming to Japan

Back in 2005 the Singaporean government cast an envious eye toward the Asian casino juggernaut of Macau and framed plans to build a casino industry that would rival the former Portuguese colony’s.  They have since built 2 of the most expensive integrated casino resorts in the world and early signs suggest their ambitious plans to significantly raise revenues and tourism numbers may just work.

Now Japan is casting an envious eye toward Singapore and may soon have a Marina Bay Sands of their own.

This would require legislative changes since Japan currently has laws banning casino gambling (despite a thriving pachinko and pachislots industry, which is another story altogether).  But it appears the necessary changes are in the wings.

Members of the Japanese Diet are apparently in the process of drafting a bill that will repeal existing laws and open the door for casino operations to submit license applications as early as 2011. The bill’s chance of successful passage is far from assured, but nevertheless realistic from all reports.  And we all know the impact that a bit of economic hardship has on legislators’ views toward gambling…and Japan has been hit by the GFC about as hard as any developed nation.

No doubt the Wynns, Adelsons, Hos, Packers and Gentings of this world are feverishly positioning themselves with local partners to get a strategic edge come RFP time.  And if the trend to build bigger and casinos continues, as it no doubt will, we can expect something pretty impressive to materialize in the land of the rising sun before too long.