Japan-based credit debt watcher Nomura said that the Japanese casino industry could generate US$7 billion worth of gross gaming revenue should it allow two major integrated resorts (IR) to operate.

In its forecast, the Japanese brokerage firm said: “We believe a US$7 billion gaming market would allow the two IRs to each generate annual property EBITDA of nearly US$1.6 billion (16 percent return on invested capital), assuming VIP and mass GGR tax rate of 13 percent and 23 percent”.

Nomura analysts cited Yokohama and Osaka's local population of nine million, sizeable inbound tourist flow, and strong infrastructure support as the reasons on why these cities are perfect to host integrated resorts.

While Nomura has presented a strong case for allowing IRs to operate in Japan, its views varied differently from that of the expert committee assigned with recommending rules for the IR implementation bill. One of the features of the expert committee's report is a bidding process that some industry leaders describe as uniquely Japanese.

The first step of the bidding process is that local governments will select an operator to work with, and then they would jointly draft a proposal that will be presented to the national government. The second step entails the approval of the joint proposal by national government agencies, which include the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and Japan's Casino Management Board. The bidding process will still be placed under the scrutiny of legislators so changes are expected to be made.

Positive reports from analysts prove that Japan stands to gain in allowing integrated resorts to operate in its cities. In turn, the Japanese government should expedite the passage of the rules concerning the IR implementation bill.

In this interview with Becky Liggero, Mike Bohan of Football INDEX shared why punters want to try their product and how sports betting is somehow similar to stock trading.

Chinese authorities arrested seventy-seven alleged members of an online gambling group after pocketing close to $900,000 from victims based in mainland China.

Bad Bets, an anti-gambling group in Australia, handed out flyers portraying graphic violence outside schools in a bid to close down a local poker club in Melbourne.

Breon Corcoran stepped down as the Chief Executive Officer of Paddy Power Betfair, and the company's shares took a 7 percent nosedive shortly after the announcement was made.

In 2015, it is estimated that there was a total of 164.9 million mobile phone gamers in the U.S. alone. By 2020, that number is predicted to rise to 213 million.

Coin-In—this refers to the total amount of money played into the machine. The coin-in could be from the guest’s wallet and from the credits he earned while playing in the machine.

African sportsbook and casino operator Betin has partnered with Income Access to launch a new affiliate program that will provide affiliates an opportunity to generate high levels of regional traffic.

Kudos to Sam Grafton for winning the inaugural PokerStars Festival Bucharest Main Event! The €1,100 Main Event attracted 736 entrants, with Grafton copping the €117,707 first prize after cutting a deal with the Turkish player Anil Ozdemir.