After a hectic few years that has seen both company founder Kazuo Okada and his replacement Jun Fujimoto forcibly removed due to allegations of fraudulent behavior, Japan’s Universal Entertainment Corp (UEC) is still trying to find its feet.
Tomohiro Okada, the estranged son of Kazuo, clearly believes he can be the answer to UEC’s woes. In September 2024, Tomohiro – who owns a controlling 53.27% stake in the group’s ultimate parent Okada Holdings Ltd – was announced as the company’s Representative Director and President, replacing Fujimoto after the Tokyo High Court found the latter to have breached his fiducial duty.
Since then, Tomohiro has vowed to stamp out such misconduct by Universal’s executive team, starting with the establishment of a Governance Committee as his first act in charge.
Ironically, the Governance Committee in March issued a recommendation for greater separation from parent company Okada Holdings Ltd due to the ongoing Okada family dispute between Kazuo and his children, who are supported by their mother Tokako.
But there is work to do. UEC, which remains a leading supplier of pachinko and pachislot machines in Japan and is the parent company of Philippines integrated resort Okada Manila, fell to a US$102 million loss in 2024 and another US$69 million loss in 1H25 – largely on ongoing woes at Okada Manila.
Time will tell if UEC appointment Nobuki Sato, named as the new President and CEO of the Manila IR following Byron Yip’s departure in August, is the right man for the job.
