At a casino school in Tokyo, croupier-in-training Takuto Saito settles behind a green table and reaches for the roulette wheel, addressing a group of imaginary punters: “Spin up. Place your bets.”
The 24-year-old has never set foot in a casino, but he is gambling that new laws opening up the sector would soon create plenty of jobs for croupiers in Japan.
Owner Masayoshi Oiwane said interest has skyrocketed in his casino school, where would-be croupiers learn to deal baccarat games, spin the roulette wheel and supervise betting on the green baize tables.
“Our enrollment has doubled from last year,” he said. “We are seeing an unprecedented level of momentum.”
Japan was long the only developed nation that banned casinos, but passed legislation in 2016 paved the way to make the industry legal, and on Tuesday, Japan’s House of Representatives passed a bill allowing the construction of three “integrated resort” facilities combining casinos, convention centers, hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues.
Economists estimate that the casino industry could bring in ￥2 trillion to ￥3.7 trillion (US$18.2 billion to US$33.6 billion) a year, and national and regional governments are set for a jackpot of a combined 30 percent tax on gaming revenue.
Toru Mihara, an expert on the casino sector at Osaka University of Commerce, said just one integrated resort could create tens of thousands of jobs and have a “great impact on the local economy.”
The legislation, expected to pass the House of Councillors later this month, begins a process that would see regions bid for the right to host integrated resort facilities.
However, Japan already has a significant gambling problem, with a government survey last year showing that an estimated 3.2 million people are addicted.
Proponents and critics of casinos say the nation has long neglected its gambling problem and Noriko Tanaka, who heads a group working with gambling addicts, said the casino legislation would only make things worse.
The laws make it easy for gamblers to take out credit lines to play at casinos and lack concrete financial commitments to tackling addiction, she said.
To deter addiction, lawmakers have agreed to impose a ￥6,000 entry fee on local residents and limit their visits to 10 times a month.
However, Tanaka said this is not enough.
“If you are promoting casinos, you have to face the problem of gambling addiction,” she said.
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