In Japan, the prefectural government for Tokyo has reportedly hired professional services firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC to carry out an impact study on the possibility of bringing an integrated casino resort to the nation’s largest city.

Positives and negatives:

According to a report from GGRAsia, the move from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was initiated early last month and is to see Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC research and analyze the positives and negatives associated with the area hosting one of three such developments envisioned following July’s passage of the Integrated Resort Implementation Bill.

Communities to compete for licenses:

The ratification of the Integrated Resort Implementation Bill over the summer is now reportedly expected to result in Japan licensing a trio of Las Vegas-style integrated casino resorts complete with hotels, shops and conference facilities by as early as 2025. However, this legislation purportedly requires all potential operators to partner with a specific local authority before entering the race for one of these licenses by presenting their development plans to the central government.

Latest investigation:

GGRAsia reported that Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC, which is the local branch of London-headquartered Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, was the only bidder for the work and is to be paid approximately $68,600 for carrying out its investigation. It additionally detailed that Tokyo’s Bureau of Port and Harbor has commissioned and released the results of four such impact studies since 2014.

Lucrative future market:

The Asian gaming news website moreover quoted an early-September briefing from Hong Kong-based brokerage firm CLSA Limited as explaining that Tokyo is now seen as a frontrunner alongside the cities of Yokohama and Osaka for one of the three integrated casino resort licenses. It had earlier cited a July note from American financial services giant Morgan Stanley as detailing that the trio of gaming facilities is expected to bring in $11 billion to $20 billion in annual gaming revenues.