The Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) announced yesterday that the public hearing regarding Full Tilt Poker’s remote gambling license will be held on Monday, September 19th at 9:00am at the Riverbank Park Plaza Hotel in London.
The original hearing was held on Tuesday, July 26th with the purpose of allowing both the AGCC and Full Tilt to present any evidence in support or in opposition to Full Tilt’s suspended license. In the end, not much actually happened and the public hearing was adjourned until what was supposed to be September 15th at the latest.
At the July hearing, Full Tilt Poker’s attorney, Martin Heslop, requested that the pre-application hearing for adjournment be held in private, known as “in camera.” Full Tilt is in a difficult situation, as it owes as much as $150 million to customers, but for a variety of reasons, including seizure of funds by the United States Department of Justice, theft of funds by a payment processor, and the lack of any revenue coming in because of its suspended license, is unable to pay. As such, it is looking for investors to purchase the company and inject enough money in order to get customer deposits back in the appropriate hands. Because of the fear of evidence being made public that could potentially harm negotiations with investors, Heslop felt that holding the pre-application hearing for adjournment was appropriate. Essentially, there was no downside to it, whereas holding it in public had no real upside.
The in camera hearing was granted by lead Commissioner Isabel Picornel and the following day, the AGCC released a statement which read:
“As a result of the arguments on behalf of FTP during the pre-hearing application the Commissioners decided to adjourn the hearing as they felt it was in the best interests of FTP’s customers. A key consideration in their decision was to allow FTP licensees ‘to further pursue advanced commercial negotiations which could lead to a more beneficial outcome for player interests.’
The Commissioners adjourned the substantive hearing to commence as soon as possible and in any event not later than 15th September. Further details regarding the exact date and venue of the substantive hearing will be announced as soon as practical.”
What the AGCC had decided was that everyone concerned was better off if Full Tilt had more time to find an investor. Nothing that was going to be said at the July hearing that couldn’t be said at a later one, but in the meantime, money could possibly be found to pay back Full Tilt’s customers.
In the interim, Full Tilt has not found a buyer. Less than two weeks ago, the company issued a statement, reading, in part:
“On August 16, Irish based Pocket Kings Ltd., brand executor for the Full Tilt Poker moniker, concluded the exclusivity period of negotiations with their current potential investor.
While Pocket Kings Ltd. plans to continue discussions with its current investor, the company has now begun negotiations with additional potential investors to conclude the sale/partnership of the Full Tilt Poker brand and its assets.”