Groupe Bernard Tapie purchase Full Tilt Poker

[Bart(UK)]

Full Tilt Poker and Groupe Bernard Tapie Sign Acquisition Agreement Full Tilt Poker comment in their latest press release on the happenings surrounding the company. PokerStrategy.com received the following exclusive press release: "Full Tilt Poker and Groupe Bernard Tapie Sign Acquisition Agreement Dublin, Ireland (September 30, 2011) Laurent Tapie, Managing Director of ‘Groupe Bernard Tapie’ announced today that the group has signed an exclusive agreement with the Board of Directors of Full Tilt Poker to acquire the company and all of its associated assets. This agreement, which includes the repayment of Full Tilt Poker’s world-wide players in full, is subject to several conditions; the first of which is a favorable resolution with the United States Department of Justice. Discussions with the United States Department of Justice will begin immediately. ‘Groupe Bernard Tapie’ has over 30 years of experience in the salvation of financially distressed businesses, with over 40 companies acquired and managed to profitability, the most well-known being the sport equipment giant, Adidas." Sorry about the bold font, couldn't seem to fix the copy/paste. Sourced from PokerStrategy.com

[Samba_SamPa]

Re: Groupe Bernard Tapie purchase Full Tilt Poker Recognise the name, didn't he own Marseille? He was in charge when they were found guilty of match fixing I think, and went to jail. This will re-instill confidence in the Full Tilt brand then!

[Rebel]

Re: Groupe Bernard Tapie purchase Full Tilt Poker

Recognise the name, didn't he own Marseille? He was in charge when they were found guilty of match fixing I think, and went to jail. This will re-instill confidence in the Full Tilt brand then!

Yep Same man

[Goldenjaguar]

Re: Groupe Bernard Tapie purchase Full Tilt Poker Full Tilt exclusive: In his first interview, Laurent Tapie says he believes in the Full Tilt project and has the funds to repay players, but admits there is “still a long way to go” Laurent Tapie has confirmed he has agreed to take over Full Tilt Poker and in his first interview with a media outlet, he told iGaming France that he “wouldn’t have undertaken such a project if he didn’t believe in its potential”. Full Tilt Poker and Groupe Bernard Tapie, the company bearing his father’s first name that is carrying out the deal, put out a statement today saying they had signed an exclusive agreement to sell the company and all of its associated assets. The agreement would include the repayment of Full Tilt Poker’s world-wide players in full, is subject to several conditions; the first of which is a favorable resolution with the United States Department of Justice. Tapie wouldn’t be drawn on the specifics on how much money his company would put on the table, but added: “We have shown that we have the funds necessary to repay player debts. We want to find ways where we don’t have to put in all the money and will be talking to the US Department of Justice next week.” He would also not be drawn on what kind of compromise he would agree to with the American authorities that could lead to players getting their funds back, but Full Tilt is believed to have player debts of more than US$200m and a figure of US$300m has been widely touted as the minimum amount any acquiring company would need to get it up and running again. However, the DOJ has frozen around US$331m of Full Tilt players’ funds that were held by online payment companies for the operator. A potential solution could therefore see the DOJ agreeing to return as much of that money as possible to players, while pursuing its civil and criminal cases against Full Tilt’s management. Tapie would then be able to finance any outstanding debts (which would be considerably less) and reopen the site. He also confirmed the site would keep the Full Tilt Poker brand: “The brand is not in question, it’s a well-known brand and the technology is widely recognized as being possibly the best in the industry. The management of the company is being questioned and it will be changed (should the takeover be concluded). I believe we have the tools necessary to once again make the site one of the leaders in the online poker sector.” Tapie added there was “still a long way to go” before the deal is definitely done but said he hoped to have the site reopened by January 2012. iGaming France understands the deal signed by Tapie is a binding agreement which he can exit if he doesn’t reach agreement with the different parties he’s in discussions with and that Groupe Bernard Tapie is currently the only investor, but there could be new investors coming into the structure as the project develops.

[Fonzie14]

Re: Groupe Bernard Tapie purchase Full Tilt Poker

From Pokernews:- According to a report Tuesday by Subject:Poker, Groupe Bernard Tapie and the U.S. Department of Justice have reached an agreement that could ultimately allow for repayment of players at Full Tilt Poker. The deal, which would allow GBT to continue its acquisition of Full Tilt Poker, is subject to approval by the shareholders of FTP. If the shareholders agree to the sale of the company, the deal with the DOJ will provide for payment of all players worldwide. Multiple sources confirmed to Subject:Poker that the following email was sent to Tiltware shareholders from CEO Ray Bitar: 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 Full Tilt Poker. 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 Subject:Poker reports that the final details of the deal are being worked out between GBT and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Once a deal is finalized, Groupe Bernard Tapie will be able to propose a deal to the current FTP shareholders. GBT would assume all of the debt to non-U.S. players and the Department of Justice would set up a fund to repay all U.S. players, according to the report. There had been a long silence since the announcement that Groupe Bernard Tapie had signed an acquisition agreement with Full Tilt Poker, but this appears to be positive news for Full Tilt Poker players with funds stuck on the site. The overall estimated amount of those funds stands somewhere between $115 million and $330 million. Read more:

http://www.pokernews.com/news/2011/11/groupe-bernard-tapie-reaches-deal-with-department-of-justice-11344.htm