Huis Ten Bosch President Hideo Sawada has announced that His Sasebo-based, Dutch-themed park will be welcoming a Chinese partner, the Fosun Group, as a major investor—a move that would likely have ramifications for the shape of an IR consortium in Nagasaki, should that location be selected for one of the three available licenses.  Huis Ten Bosch, the operator of the Dutch-inspired theme park in southwestern Japan, will sell a nearly 25% stake to Chinese resort conglomerate Fosun Group, in a bid to attract more visitors from China.  Fosun will purchase a 24.9% interest from the parent company, travel agency H.I.S., as well as five other stakeholders, including Kyushu Electric Power and Kyushu Railway, according to Huis Ten Bosch's announcement.  H.I.S. will remain the majority shareholder at 50.1%, while the five other companies will own a combined 25%.  The Chinese conglomerate will also install a director on Huis Ten Bosch's board.  The parties plan to ink the deal at around the start of the New Year. (2018.12, 171G)

Fosun will become a major investor of the biggest theme park in Asia to expand the culture and tourism field.