Full Tilt Poker Sale Hindered by Poker Pros

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February 9, 2012

The purchase of Full Tilt Poker by the French investment firm Groupe Bernard Tapie had been settled at $80 million. But according to a statement released to the Gaming Intelligence by Groupe Bernard Tapie lawyer, Behnam Dayanim, eminent poker pros are coming in the way of the completion of the deal, which otherwise would have been completed in the next few weeks.

Players Asked to Repay Funds Owed to Full Tilt Poker

A solicitor based in Washington DC stated that not much progress has been made on his part to convince players to pay back the money owed to Full Tilt Poker. Players like Phil Ivey, David Benyamine, Erick Lindgren, Mike Matusow and Barry Greenstein owe significant sums of cash to the poker room. The solicitor added that none of the professionals has showed interest in settling the issue. This is expected to delay the acquisition process further.

Exact Debt Amount Not Revealed

Details regarding the exact amount of cash which players owe to the poker room have not been revealed. The approximate amount of cash which Full Tilt Poker is supposed to receive from certain players has been estimated to be between $10 million and $20 million. The issues of missing funds from the company was highlighted by Groupe Bernard during the finalization of the deal. The managing director of the investment firm, Laurent Tapie stated that the missing fund details were found as the company had been making efforts towards gathering information regarding the financial situation of the poker site.

In the process of gathering information, the investment firm found out that the financial situation of the poker site is worse than what they earlier thought. Groupe Bernard Tapie didn’t have any intentions of filing individual lawsuits against professionals. The firm is trying to negotiate with players regarding the money they owe to Full Tilt. The solicitor added that the missing funds is not the only reason which is holding back the Full Tilt Poker acquisition deal, but it is one of the most significant factors.

There is a possibility that other players who were associated with Full Tilt Poker could also owe money to the site. Some of these players are Howard Lederer, John Juanda, Erik Seidel, Phil Gordon, Gus Hansen, and Allen Cunningham.