• Subscribe
  • Magazines
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
Sunday 1 June 2025
  • zh-hant 中文
  • ja 日本語
  • en English
IAG
Advertisement
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • UAE
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
No Result
View All Result
IAG
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • UAE
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
No Result
View All Result
IAG
No Result
View All Result

Galaxy has submitted seven RFIs in Japan, Francis Lui reveals

Andrew W Scott and Ben Blaschke by Andrew W Scott and Ben Blaschke
Tue 20 Nov 2018 at 15:42

L to R: Galaxy Entertainment Group General Manager – Japan Development Satoshi Okabe, Galaxy Entertainment Group Vice Chairman Francis Lui and Galaxy Entertainment Group Japan Chief Operating Officer Ted Chan at Tuesday’s media roundtable in Tokyo

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) has submitted Requests for Information to seven different Japanese cities and prefectures as part of its bid to win a Japan IR license, the company’s Deputy Chairman Francis Lui revealed on Tuesday.

The seven potential locations currently targeted by GEG include Osaka, Hokkaido, Nagasaki, Wakayama and Aichi prefectures as well as the cities of Tomakomai in Hokkaido and Yokohama.

Speaking at a special media roundtable event in Tokyo, attended by Inside Asian Gaming, Lui explained that Galaxy is yet to make any decision on a preferred location for a Japanese IR.

“At the moment we are continuing to study all the cities that are interested to have an IR in Japan,” he said. “We have had our office in Japan for a few years now and have been talking to, listening to, understanding various parts of Japan – how an IR would be able to help the local economy.

“Different cities have different needs or different requirements and preferences. Bigger cities like Osaka and smaller cities like Wakayama – each of them have their own uniqueness and own preferences which is why we need to understand more before we make a decision.

“So far we have been very actively participating in RFI. We have already made proposals to [seven cities and prefectures] … we have written to them to help them understand a bit more about what Galaxy as a company would be able to bring to their cities.”

Lui added that the non-gaming facilities contained within any IR GEG was to develop in Japan would be determined by which city the company ultimately partnered with.

“We want to be complementary,” he said. “For example, in a city like Osaka we would not be building a theme park such as a Universal Studios and we won’t be building a baseball park in Osaka either because we don’t want to build facilities that would be competing with existing facilities.

“We would like to do something else that would be complementary to the city and the establishments there. That’s why we need to learn what we can do for each city – that’s our approach.”

Asked about any minimum stake GEG would expect to have as part of a consortia, Lui said he remained “open-minded” on how any such partnership might work. Galaxy has already found one partner in Monaco’s Société des Bains de Mer (SBM), with their partnership made official in May, although it is anticipated that any winning bid will also require one or more local Japanese partners to be involved.

“I think we always need partners and in a country like Japan, we are only a guest of the country so we need local partners to be able to do an IR the right way,” Lui said.

“We are always looking for good, reliable Japanese partners to be helping the consortium … but on a shareholder level it is something we can’t answer at the moment because like in any international practice we have to decide which partner will do what.

“At the end of the day I believe the equity and the responsibility should be shared equally. Before that happens we must understand what are the responsibilities of ourselves and what are the responsibilities of our local partners.

“I think it is too premature for us to say what we must have. We need to sit down and discuss it pragmatically.”

Lui also took the opportunity to promote Galaxy’s IR credentials, coming off a highly successful 2018 which saw strong revenue growth from the company’s Macau operations across all sectors. That growth included a 22% year-on-year increase in net revenue to HK$13.9 billion in 2Q18 and a 6% increase in the third quarter to HK$13.0 billion. GEG’s 3Q18 results came despite bad luck at all three of its Macau IRs and the closure of casino operations for 30 hours in August due to Typhoon Mangkhut.

“On the outside, we think we have the execution capability that is being well demonstrated with our success in a short 15 years in Macau,” Lui stated.

“Galaxy Macau has already become the number one IR in the world in just eight years. If you look at the balance sheet, we have over US$4 billion in our bank account and are without debt.

“So we are capable of building whatever size is needed. We don’t have any problem reaching any size and scale but we need to understand what a city needs before we start building.”

Among the primary concerns facing all potential operators is widespread public opposition to the building of casinos in Japan, with multiple opinion polls showing that the majority of residents do not support the development of the nation’s IR industry.

Lui said there needs to be a joint effort between operators, government and media to educate the public on exactly what an IR represents.

RelatedPosts

10 Years Ago – Reimagining Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka gazettes draft bill to establish Gambling Regulatory Authority

Sat 31 May 2025 at 06:03
Robert Goldstein to step aside as LVS Chairman and CEO from March 2026, replaced by Patrick Dumont

Robert Goldstein: Macau gaming market challenged by increased competition, online gambling and US-Sino trade war

Fri 30 May 2025 at 06:42
Macau’s hotel occupancy rate reaches 89% in July

Macau’s hotel occupancy rate climbed to 87.8% in April

Thu 29 May 2025 at 17:27
On the brink

On the brink

Thu 29 May 2025 at 13:27
Load More

“We have to do it together to make the IR more understandable to the Japanese population,” he said. “Of course seeing is believing which is why we always encourage people to come to places where there is an IR to see for themselves what an IR can do. It is not just about gaming.

“We understand that this is a new industry and we need to be careful because an integrated resort is something that the general public do not completely understand. I think it is important that we try to explain the pros and cons of an IR to the general public to buy more consensus before we start building.”

 

 

 

Tags: casinoFrancis LuiGalaxyHokkaidoirJapanMacauNagasakiOsakaRFIWakayamaYokohama
Share7Share1
Andrew W Scott and Ben Blaschke

Andrew W Scott and Ben Blaschke

A former sports journalist in Sydney, Australia, Ben has been Managing Editor of Inside Asian Gaming since early 2016. He played a leading role in developing and launching IAG Breakfast Briefing in April 2017 and oversees as well as being a key contributor to all of IAG’s editorial pursuits.

Born in Australia, Andrew is a gaming industry expert and media publisher, commentator and journalist who moved to Hong Kong in 2005 and then Macau in 2009, when he founded O MEDIA, one of Macau’s largest media companies and parent company of Inside Asian Gaming.

Current Issue

Editorial – Foreigner-only casinos: Seize the day

Editorial – Foreigner-only casinos: Seize the day

by Ben Blaschke
Thu 29 May 2025 at 13:38

I was recently asked by someone working at a foreigner-only casino for my thoughts on the outlook for the Asian...

On the brink

On the brink

by Pierce Chan
Thu 29 May 2025 at 13:27

The transition period for Macau’s 11 satellite casinos is set to expire at the end of this year, after which...

A moral defense of gambling

A moral defense of gambling

by Andrew Russell
Wed 28 May 2025 at 18:19

Economist Andrew Russell explores the differences between community benefit and in-principle arguments for the existence of a legal gambling industry...

Face to face

Face to face

by Ben Blaschke
Wed 28 May 2025 at 18:08

Konami caught the eye at the recent G2E Asia show in Macau with its SYNK Vision Tables, which utilize facial...

Evolution Asia
Aristocrat
GLI
Mindslot
Mindslot
Solaire
Hann
Tecnet
Nustar
Jumbo

Related Posts

10 Years Ago – Reimagining Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka gazettes draft bill to establish Gambling Regulatory Authority

by Newsdesk
Sat 31 May 2025 at 06:03

A draft bill that would establish an official regulator for the Sri Lankan gaming industry, to be known as the Gambling Regulatory Authority, has taken another step forward after being gazetted. According to the Sri Lanka Mirror, the official announcement...

RGB International signs agreement to distribute KL Saberi and Atlas gaming machines

After record-breaking sales in 2024, Malaysia’s RGB sees 1Q25 profit fall to

by Newsdesk
Sat 31 May 2025 at 05:53

Malaysian gaming product distributor RGB International Bhd has reported group-wide revenue of MYR73.6 million (US$17.3 million) for the three months to 31 March 2025, down 65% year-on-year due to a lower number of products sold. The figure was also 79%...

Robert Goldstein to step aside as LVS Chairman and CEO from March 2026, replaced by Patrick Dumont

Robert Goldstein: Macau gaming market challenged by increased competition, online gambling and US-Sino trade war

by Ben Blaschke
Fri 30 May 2025 at 06:42

Las Vegas Sands (LVS) Chairman and CEO Robert Goldstein has bemoaned the lingering impact of the US-China trade war, as well as increased domestic and regional competition and the rise of online gambling across Asia for sustained flatness in the...

Industry hopes Thai Entertainment Complex Roundtable can establish “common ground” with those opposing legal casinos

Industry hopes Thai Entertainment Complex Roundtable can establish “common ground” with those opposing legal casinos

by Ben Blaschke
Fri 30 May 2025 at 05:38

Industry figures taking part in the Thai Entertainment Complex Roundtable (TECR) next Thursday 5 June hope to find common ground with those who oppose Thailand’s Entertainment Complex Bill, citing the opportunity to use an evidence-based approach to achieve outcomes that...



IAG

© 2005-2024
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.

  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • NEWSFEED
  • MAG ARTICLES
  • VIDEO
  • OPINION
  • TAGS
  • REGIONAL
  • EVENTS
  • CONSULTING
  • CONTRIBUTORS
  • MAGAZINES
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • ADVERTISE

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

No Result
View All Result
  • Subscribe
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • Magazines
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • About
  • Home for G2E Asia

© 2005-2024
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.

  • English