Stars to relaunch Tilt following acquisition
Operator permitted to apply for licences in US states under PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker brands regulation permitting - Isai Scheinberg to step down within 45 days.
PokerStars intends to relaunch Full Tilt Poker “In most markets as a separate brand,” after completing its deal to acquire the assets of its former rival, however its founder and Black Friday indictee Isai Scheinberg will be forced to stand down as a director of the company within 45 days time.
The Isle of Man-licensed operator, which has admitted to no wrongdoing, agreed to pay the United States government US$731m to acquire the assets of the one-time Alderney licensee, including a $547m sum to be paid over the course of three years. PokerStars chairman Mark Scheinberg has described the deal as bringing “Welcome relief to Full Tilt Poker players who have been waiting over 12 months for repayment of their money, and benefits the entire poker community.”
Stars will appoint a new management team to run Full Tilt operations from the latter’s existing Dublin office, although “regulatory oversight will be transferred to the Isle of Man.” Stars intends to apply for licences with regulatory authorities in the Isle of Man and Malta for this purpose.
Furthermore, the DoJ has revealed that “PokerStars is also prohibited from employing, or otherwise hiring, Full Tilt Poker insiders Raymond Bitar, Howard Lederer, Rafael Furst, Chris Ferguson, and Nelson Burtnick.”
Notably, the deal allows PokerStars to apply for licences in the United States regulation permitting. Currently Nevada is the only state to have issued online poker licences, with Bally, IGT and Shuffle Master the three recipients to date.
Mark Scheinberg, said in a statement: We are delighted we have been able to put this matter behind us, and also secured our ability to operate in the United States of America whenever the regulations allow.”
He described the acquisition as having “strengthened” PokerStars, adding: The way we have operated our business since the U.S. Department of Justice brought its claim has underlined our credentials as a responsible online poker operator.”
“In particular, the prompt repayment of our former US customers in as quick a time frame as possible demonstrated our industry-leading commitment to the segregation of customer funds. We continue to encourage jurisdictions all over the world to introduce sensible online poker regulation,” added the chairman, making reference to the nine-figure sum paid out to PokerStars’ US players after Black Friday brought about the shutdown of its American-facing operations.
While PokerStars is yet to identify in which jurisdictions it intends to relaunch the FTP brand, the operator’s head of home games Lee Jones explained in a Q&A on forum siteTwo Plus Two: “We are not currently planning to seek a license to operate Full Tilt in France, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Belgium and Estonia.” Stars already holds dot.country licences for its flagship brand in each of these six jurisdictions.
In a post on the operator’s corporate blog, PokerStars head of corporate communications Eric Hollreiser said the repayment of players as part of the deal was “Vital to re-building trust in online poker and instilling confidence in the global poker economy.
“It’s too early to begin disclosing many details about our strategic plans for Full Tilt, but our first order of business is to re-open the site, pay back all of the players and begin rebuilding Full Tilt’s reputation,” added Hollreiser.
Raymond Bitar, former CEO of FTP, currently awaiting a court hearing following his arrest and subsequent bail last month, released a statement via his legal team following the announcement of the deal. “Over the past few days, I signed the papers necessary to complete Full Tilt’s deal with the US Government. The Company’s assets will now be transferred to PokerStars and Full Tilt employees will have a new employer as well.
“I believe that this deal will result in Full Tilt’s customers being repaid. I am extremely pleased and excited by this prospect. For the past 15 months, I have worked hard on possible solutions to get players repaid. It has been a very long road, with lots of bumps along the way, but I am glad we have gotten to the end. I only wish that we could have resolved the situation much sooner.
“Today’s settlement also ends the US Government’s legal case against the Full Tilt companies. I am glad that this chapter has closed. I would like to thank the company’s many dedicated employees who helped achieve this result. It has been a pleasure working at Full Tilt and I am grateful for the many friendships and memories that I made there. I wish everyone in the Full Tilt family success in their future endeavors.
“I also extend my best wishes to PokerStars. This is a very creative deal and it should benefit everyone: the players, Full Tilt and PokerStars alike.”