Japanese fintech, gaming and renewable energy firm Pixel Companyz will partner with French casino operator Groupe Partouche to develop an integrated resort (IR) in Japan.
According to an August 14 news release, the partners and other unnamed consortium partners will bid on a license to develop and operate a “premier integrated resort in Japan.”
The consortium, it added, “aims to develop an IR unique to Japan that will highlight the tourism assets, food culture, brands and the hospitable culture that the country has to offer.”
Partouche ended a previous partnership with Hong Kong’s Oshidori International Holdings in May but said it remained interested in working with other partners to build a Japanese IR.
Pixel didn’t reveal exactly its preferred location, but according to Inside Asian Gaming, the most likely location is Nagasaki given the smaller scale of the proposed development. Partouche operates 42 casinos in Europe, also briefly entered into a preliminary MOU with Hong Kong-listed Oshidori International Holdings to pursue an IR bid before terminating the partnership in May due to “differences in vision and strategies.” Oshidori will continue to pursue a license in Nagasaki.
The statement said the proposed IR will include a conference and exhibition center, hotels, restaurants, shops and “all services contributing to the development of tourism.”
Pixel Companyz said it’s established a “capital and business alliance” agreement with an entity called TTL Resorts, described as a firm with “wide-ranging experience in data analysis and investment aspects of the gaming industry.”
In 2016, Pixel Companyz formed a joint venture with Hong Kong-listed casino electronic games maker Paradise Entertainment Ltd. and Jay Chun under the brand LT Game Japan, to focus on the development of slot machines.
A member of the Japanese government has conceded that national authorities could change the timetable for licensing casino resorts in the country due to Covid-19.
