A quick glance at the tables of the Cereus Network poker rooms Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet shows that US players are still playing real money games, despite warnings in the poker client that US players can’t play.
What they are not allowed to do is withdraw their funds. Not only are US players not being paid but it is being reported by Kris Hundley of the St. Petersburg Times that some of their investors are not being paid either and as many players have suspected, the company may be in serious financial trouble.
The St. Petersburg Times article states that one of the shell corporations believed to consist of the founders of Absolute Poker and other investors is still actively involved in the operations of the company and owes millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. Hundley also reports that just weeks prior to the indictments and account seizures by the US Department of Justice, the shareholders planned to sell the company as investors in Absolute Poker that paid as much as $3 per share have only received $0.18 in dividends to this point and have not seen dividends in years.
Some US players continue to hold out hope. Some even continue to play; but with the shareholders scrambling to recoup their investments, the DOJ seizing funds and indicting founders, the cost of transaction with US players likely at an all-time high and non-US players limited to $250 a week in withdraws, speculation that US players will not be paid continues to mount.
