Does Full Tilt Poker Accept US Players?
Like most other online poker rooms today, Full Tilt does not accept players from the US. In 2004, Full Tilt was established as an online poker site by TiltWare, LLC. The poker room enjoyed popularity for a long time and was arguably the best online poker site after Pokerstars until it was hit by the UIGEA. In 2011, the site stopped accepting US players and lost its .com domain because of the numerous accusations against its owners.
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| 1 |  |
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About Full Tilt Poker
Full Tilt poker was enrolled as a real money online poker site in Alderney, which is located in Channel Islands near the UK. It was licensed under the name Filco Limited by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission but i
t’s ‘category one’ license was dissolved by Alderney Gambling Commission on 29 June, 2011.
In 2012, Groupe Bernard Tapie (“GBT”) agreed to purchase the poker firm in spite of its legal troubles. However, on 24 April, 2012, it was reported that GBT had pulled out and that PokerStars were to buy Full Tilt.
There has been no more news since this date and Full Tilt is still closed. On 2 July 2012, the former chief executive of Full Tilt Poker, Ray Bitar, voluntarily flew to New York to be arrested. Some have viewed this as a sign that deals are being done between the US Department of Justice, Full Tilt and Pokerstars and that the Pokerstars purchase is close to completion.
How UIGEA changed Full Tilt’s course
Full Tilt poker experienced major changes when the US government came up with the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) in 2006. The law stopped all financial institutions from processing transactions of online poker sites. Full Tilt Poker still decided to function in the US due to its customer base and the profits it was generating. The US player base continued to grow as more players who lived in the States started playing on Full Tilt as other online poker sites would not accept them.
Until 2011, Full Tilt maintained its popularity, but in September 2011, the Justice Department of the US accused Full Tilt Poker of defrauding US poker players of around 300 million dollars. New York Southern District’s Attorney filed a complaint against the directors of Full Tilt, Howard Lederer, Ray Bitar, Chris Ferguson and Rafe Furst, for what the Justice Department called ‘a Ponzi scheme’. However, lawyers supporting the poker company have dismissed all the charges against Full Tilt as null.
Full Tilt Poker and US players
After gaining its .com domain back from the Department of Justice, Full Tilt Poker was asked to close its online poker 
operations in the US. The site assured US players that their balances would be secure and returned soon. But although some have managed to get their funds back, the majority are still waiting.
UIGEA and US online poker
The UIGEA does not make playing online poker in the US illegal. However, the act stops all the financial institutions and banks in the US from processing money for online gambling activities. Bovada Poker is one of the few safe and trusted sites that still accepts real money players from the US. Click here for a full review.
