Since being indicted on April 15th, Full Tilt has gone through a tumultuous time and the once top online poker room has completely fallen from grace. Here’s an up to date timeline of what’s transpired in the months since the Full Tilt indictment.
Full Tilt Poker Timeline
April 15th – Black Friday. Indictment unsealed against Full Tilt Poker, Pokerstars and Cereus Network (Absolute Poker, UB Poker).
April 19th – DOJ and Full Tilt Poker enter into "Domain name use agreement" which permits the domain fulltiltpoker to be back up in an effort to facilitate players and not block non-US action.
April 26th – Full Tilt Poker issues statement: Working with US DOJ to facilitate payments but no means to pay due to processors being unable to work with them.
May 3rd – Full Tilt Poker says payments should start flowing this week
May 15th –Full Tilt Poker statement: Apologize for players not being able to withdraw. Say non-US operations are returning to normal.
May 23rd – Indicted unsealed against doylesroom, bookmaker and beted
May 23rd – Bradley Franzen (charged along with Full Tilt Poker on Black Friday) pleads guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, accepting funds in connection with unlawful internet gambling and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
May 25th – Merge blocks some states (NY, Washington, Maryland, Missouri, Louisiana). Possibly over concerns as to where DOJ investigations are based out of.
May 31th – Full Tilt Poker issues another statement: not sure when US player will be paid. FTP claims that they are NOT bankrupt (that turns out to be a lie).
June 1st – Merge temporarily blocks all US signups citing inability to handle processing volume.
June 1st – Phil Ivey issues statement and sues Tiltware for $150 million damages
June 16th – rumors begin to circulate that Full Tilt Poker was crediting players funds without accepting the cash. Possible $60 million shortfall
June 29th – Alderney Suspends Full Tilt Poker license to sort out the situation. fulltiltpoker shutdown worldwide
May 1st – Ivey drops lawsuit against Full Tilt Poker which he had launched one month prior
May 4th – Full Tilt Poker license with French regulator Autorité de Régulation des Jeux En Ligne is suspended
May 10th – Full Tilt Poker agreed to exclusive negotiations with prospective European Investor as way to solve financial shortfall.
May 26th – Original rumors that Full Tilt Poker had a shortfall of $60 million turn out to be much worse than thought – actual shortfall around $130 million.
May 31st – Full Tilt issues statement which reveals:
- US Government had seized $115 million in two years prior to Black Friday
- FTP had discussions with 6 potential investors since Black Friday
- Processor had "stolen" $42Million from FTP prior to Black Friday
- Full Tilt Poker confirms shortfall of deposits that were credited to players accounts but they didn't actually receive the funds – exact amount not stated but sources estimate it's close to $130 million.
May 19th – DOJ amends original civil complaint. Calls Full Tilt Poker Ponzi Scheme. Three new defendants are adding: Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, and Rafe Furst. DOJ alleges Full Tilt Poker owes $150 million to US players. Total debt to players roughly $300 million worldwide.
May 21st – Being millions in debt, Full Tilt appears to have a serious French investor who is considering the purchase of FTP
May 29th – After suspending Full Tilt Poker's license on June 29th, it appears that the Alderney Gaming Control Commission (AGCC) has finally had enough of Full Tilt and they officially revoke their license.
May 12th – Merge Poker network decides to start accepting US players again after blocking access on June 1st.
May 1st – US DOJ has agreed to terms with investors Groupe Bernard Tapie. Agreement was necessary before any deal to sell Full Tilt was finalized. Full Tilt shareholders will now be able to vote on deal from GBT, and if approved the process of paying back players could continue.
May 15th – Groupe Bernard Tapie and Full Tilt come to agreement on transfer of assets. Such a deal was necessary to pave the way for the US DOJ to take possession of such assets. One step closer to a completed deal.
January 24th, 2025 – Full Tilt finalizes forfeiture with DOJ. GBT can now purchase the Full Tilt assets from the US DOJ. Good to see positive news continue to develop.
April 15th, 2025 – One year anniversary of the Full Tilt indictment and subsequent shutting down of the fulltiltpoker domain. Players have waited one year and still do not have access to their poker funds.
April 19th, 2025 – Alderney Gaming Control Commission announces a public hearing has been set for May 3rd in which they will hear arguments as to granting a Full Tilt subsidiary, Orinic Ltd, a category 2 egaming license. Orinic was the only Full Tilt subsidiary not to lose their license, as they previously held a category 1 license (did not give privileges to handle gambling funds) which was suspended for 6 month.
April 24th, 2025 – After months of negotiations with Groupe Bernard Tapie to purchase Full Tilt Poker and pay back their players, they officially announce that the deal is off. Reports indicate that the the DOJ revised the payment plan for players as the deal was closing, something that GBT could not agree to.
April 24th, 2025 – Long time FTP rival, PokerStars rumored to be interested in the purchase of Full Tilt. Original speculation started on popular forum 2+2 and PokerStars has made the statement on their blog: “As you know, PokerStars is in settlement discussions with the U.S. Department of Justice. As such settlement discussions are always confidential, we are unable to comment on rumors. As soon as we have information to share publicly we will do so.”
