About this app
About Magic Stones
The department said the guidance had been designed to “improve consistency across the sector and help prevent similar issues from occurring in future”.
In May, an investigation under the title “Operation Turbo” charged an Auckland man on eight counts under the Gambling Act.
The man was charged in connection with two illegal poker venues allegedly operating in central Auckland.
About Magic Stones
But its share price has taken a tumble over the last year, dropping up to 37% since September 2025. Its market cap currently sits at £3.39 billion.
The operator first started trading on LSEG’s main market in February 2016 under its previous company name GVC Holdings. This followed its delisting from the Alternative Investment Market (AIM exchange).
Its share price decline began after reaching an all-time high in September 2021. Over the course of five years it has slipped 73% to 530p.
About Magic Stones
The regulatory framework strictly keeps the casino component in check. Casino floor space is capped at 3% of the total floor area of the IR, while Japanese residents are restricted to three visits per week and 10 visits within any 28-day period. Each visit also carries a mandatory ¥6,000 entry fee, reinforcing the government’s intent to curb excessive gambling even as it opens the door to casinos.
Japan’s path to IR legalisation was not straight forward. The IR Promotion Act, which set Japan on the road to casino-integrated resorts, was passed in December 2016 after a contentious debate. Nearly two years later came the IR Implementation Act, which laid out the regulatory frameworks for casinos, from entry restrictions to measures addressing gambling addiction and other social concerns. Yet even as the government pitched IRs as a catalyst for tourism, regional development and economic growth, opposition remained aggressive.
Among the opposing forces was Kenji Eda, a prominent House of Representatives lawmaker from Yokohama and a senior figure in the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. Eda has been a vocal critic of the government’s IR push, raising concerns over gambling addiction, the economic impact on local businesses and whether the casino-led model would deliver the promised benefits.
