Japan approved plans for its first gambling resort Friday, after years of wrangling over regulation, opening the way for a casino in Osaka to open its doors by the end of the decade.
(Bloomberg) — Japan approved plans for its first gambling resort Friday, after years of wrangling over regulation, opening the way for a casino in Osaka to open its doors by the end of the decade.Â
The proposal for a so-called integrated resort with hotels and conference venues as well as gambling facilities was given the go-ahead, the Japan Tourism Agency said in a statement.Â
Japan’s Orix Corp has been working on the project in partnership with MGM Resorts International. The plan for the resort on Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay, still faces the remaining hurdle of obtaining a casino license if it is to open as scheduled in late 2029. The initial investment will be Â¥1.08 trillion ($8.2 billion).Â
Japan’s casino ambitions have fallen years behind initial plans in the face of stubborn public opposition due to concerns about gambling addiction and money laundering. Big names like Caesars Entertainment Inc. and Las Vegas Sands Corp. pulled out of their bids for a share of a potential $20 billion market.Â
Hirofumi Yoshimura, an opposition Japan Innovation Party politician who won re-election as Osaka governor at the weekend, has thrown his weight behind the Yumeshima plan, although polls have shown mixed feelings about casinos in the local community.Â
Read More: Gambling Prize Worth $20 Billion Is Losing Its Luster in Japan
Kishida’s administration sees casinos as key to supporting an expansion in tourism as the industry recovers from the pandemic. A bid submitted by Nagasaki prefecture is still under review, with no particular date set for a decision, Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito told reporters Friday.Â
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