We are committed to refining this functionality and will introduce an update version with improved features and policies by the end of May.
Just three days after leading online poker operator GGPoker introduced the Designated Backer feature on the global platform, it has temporarily removed it until further notice due to technical reasons.
The latest restriction, as part of the brand’s Security and Ecology Policy, came to life just weeks after the Russian GGPoker skin PokerOK openly declared war on poker stables and widespread backing on its platform. This has now been supported by a related policy by the primary operator on the GGPoker Network.
The new system requires all players to disclose their backers and handle all the deal arrangements automatically on the GGPoker app. However, it hit a major setback just three days after the feature went live on April 26, 2024.
“We have identified an issue with the Backing feature, introduced on April 26th, that inadvertently prevents late registration. To address this, we are immediately suspending the Backing feature along with the requirements to declare any backers,” GGPoker told players in a direct message notification within the poker client.
The suspension was confirmed by a GGPoker spokesperson to pokerfuse. The operator declared that all backing for tournaments already underway will continue as usual. However, backing for tournaments that had not yet started have been canceled. Other staking activities within the GGPoker client are not affected by this development.
Its removal does not suggest that GGPoker has had second thoughts on the policy. No date for the relaunch has been confirmed by the operator, but it is expected to be back in a few weeks.
“We are committed to refining this functionality and will introduce an update version with improved features and policies by the end of May. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and appreciate your understanding as we work to enhance your experience,” the in-client notification further iterated.
We have always been totally dedicated to providing GGPoker players with the safest and most secure poker experience possible
GGPoker has been tightening their Security and Ecology Policy (SEP) for some time. The operator recently cemented their strict stance on third-party tools, and players have also recently been notified that they cannot upload their own hand histories into tracking software.
In a recent statement to pokerfuse inquiring about a recent change to their SEP, a GGPoker spokesperson said that they “revisit the language we use from time to time to make sure that the wording is as clear as it can possibly be; with respect to the changes to our SEP, we simply sought to improve things for clarity’s sake.”
“We have never allowed any form of 3rd party software or tool to be used when playing at GGPoker,” they went on to say. “We have always been totally dedicated to providing GGPoker players with the safest and most secure poker experience possible, and nothing has changed in this regard.”
It remains unclear how the operator intends to tackle outside backing deals. If players want to abide by the new rules, their backer must have a GGPoker account and that would rule out a lot of regulated countries in which the brand does not have a license to operate.
The staking feature has been included in the GGPoker client for a long time. It allows customers to freely sell their own action and buy pieces of other players. The platform itself handles all the calculations and distributions of respective winnings automatically to allow for short-term and one-off staking deals.
The required declaration of backers increases the transparency within the online tournaments in the platform itself, but it creates other potential issues. For example, the designated backer feature is not permitted in certain regulated markets, including Germany and the Netherlands.
Whether or not any major changes to the new feature will be made by the operator for the relaunch — be it for technical reasons limitations or based on customer feedback — remains to be seen. Many long-term backing deals involve make-up and don’t have an automatic profit share on every tournament cash by the backed player, which again would be difficult to keep track of for GGPoker.
