Report: Groupe Bernard Tapie, U.S. DoJ Make Deal; Player Repayment Included

The poker news site Subject: Poker reported Tuesday afternoon that Groupe Bernard Tapie (GBT) has come to an agreement with the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) which will pave the way for GBT to continue the process of acquiring Full Tilt Poker. Most importantly, the deal should result Full Tilt customers being repaid the lost funds they had on deposit with the former high flyer of the internet gaming industry.

Subject: Poker acquired an e-mail that Tiltware (Full Tilt’s parent company) CEO Ray Bitar sent to his firm’s shareholders. The complete message is as follows:

“Dear members,

“I am pleased to announce that today the Department of Justice and Groupe Bernard Tapie have reached an agreement in principle regarding the acquisition of the companies comprising FullTiltPoker. My understanding is the deal provides that in exchange for an agreed upon payment by GBT, and a GBT commitment to assume responsibility for payment of ROW players, DoJ will reimburse US players and settle the outstanding civil litigation with the companies comprising FTP. Beyond these conditions, issues like the time frame and process for repayment of players remain unclear at this point and time.

“With DoJ’s consent now in hand, GBT may now proceed to finalize an agreement to acquire the companies or assets that comprise FTP. That agreement will very likely address the status of your shares or interests in the successor company. When I receive that agreement, I will coordinate with our attorneys to ensure the terms of that proposed agreement will be shared with the membership and voted on.

-Ray”

Based on this short e-mail, it appears that GBT will pay some sort of fee or fine to the DoJ (one would think that it would be significantly smaller than the $1 billion the DoJ was seeking from Full Tilt) and that monetary sum would then be used to refund U.S. players. Groupe Bernard Tapie would take care of players from the rest of the world on its own. Exact numbers, other terms, and specific mechanics of the reimbursement are not known at this time.

Once the deal with the Department of Justice is finalized, Groupe Bernard Tapie can then go to Full Tilt shareholders to vote for approval of the Full Tilt Poker acquisition. In order to be approved, shareholders representing two-thirds of ownership must give the deal the thumbs up.

If Full Tilt ownership approves the sale, which it almost certainly will, GBT can then start the resurrection process of the online poker room and try to get re-licensed. In a September 29th press release after officially revoking Full Tilt’s license, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) stated, “It is important to note that the revocation of FTP’s licences does not, as has been suggested, prevent a reactivation of the business under new ownership and management.”

Thus, as long as those who own and run the company are not the same people who stole players’ funds and ran afoul with the AGCC and the U.S. DoJ, the AGCC will essentially consider Full Tilt a brand new company and will allow it to apply for a gaming license.

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Poker talk:

FOUR OF A KIND - A hand containing all four cards of the same rank.
ANTE - A small bet all players are required to make before a hand is dealt. Not all games have an ante. Related terms: BLIND, FORCED BET.
BIG BLIND - A blind bet, usually a raise of an earlier blind which would be called the SMALL BLIND. In limit poker, the BIG BLIND is usually the size of the minimum bet on the first round of betting.
POCKET PAIR - Generic Hold'em term for 2 hole cards of the same rank.
BUTTON CHARGE - A periodic fee paid by whoever is the button, perhaps every 20 minutes or 30 minutes. Constitutes part or all of the HOUSE CUT.
OMAHA - A variant of Hold'em where each player receives 4 hole cards and must use exactly two of them (together with 3 of 5 board cards) to make a hand. Often played high-low split with an 8 qualifier for low.

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