Update: Diamond Flush Poker Confirms Seizures
On February 9, 2011, Everleaf Gaming quietly updated their terms and conditions. The change: US players were out. They kept letting Americans play for about 12 more hours anyway.
In the early hours of February 10th, US players got locked out with a generic error message: “Please use the valid username/password combination for your existing account to log in or open a new player account with us.” No mention of the ban. No explanation. If you hadn’t combed through their T&C update the day before, you’d have no idea what was happening or why.
No email followed. No press release. Everleaf’s licensees got a bare-bones note:
“As you are probably aware, Everleaf Gaming stopped players from the US as of February 10th 2012. Reason being that US authorities have seized player’s funds that were in transit to respective members and therefore discontinued Everleaf’s processing channels. Be assured that ELG is doing everything in its power to regain seized funds, until which time we advise that you inform all your US members to contact the authorities.”
That’s the whole communication. Tell your players to contact the authorities. Not exactly confidence-inspiring.
Payment problems outside the US too
Everleaf said non-US players would be unaffected. That doesn’t match what’s actually happening. Players across Europe are reporting cashout requests sitting for over a month. Neteller and Moneybookers withdrawals have stalled. The only payments going through in 2012 have been small amounts, and there’s been just one confirmed successful cashout since the US ban went into effect.
There’s another detail worth noting. In the days leading up to the ban, Everleaf was apparently letting US players request cashouts to friends in other countries via Moneybookers as a workaround. That’s a red flag. It suggests the network was aware their US processing was failing and was quietly routing around it rather than saying anything publicly.
Everleaf claims a US-facing payment processor was seized. But as Chris Costigan at Gambling 911 noted, they only had two US cashout methods: Western Union and PicClub. PicClub is still running. The theory floating around is that their Western Union office in the Philippines was shut down, but nobody has confirmed that.
What players are getting from support
Players who contact Everleaf support get one canned response: US players can no longer play on the network. That’s it. No updates on the seized funds, no timeline for resolution, no acknowledgment of the slow payouts for everyone else. Some players have been pointed toward Malta’s Lottery and Gaming Authority. That’s not reassuring.
The Malta LGA track record
The LGA has watched a string of licensees collapse over the years, and their record on protecting players in those situations is not good.
BetOnBet and its sister site Eurolinx were Microgaming skins that ran slowing cashouts right up until they offered a big reload bonus, then disappeared. Microgaming pulled them from the network in August 2009. Nobody’s been paid.
Gold Victory, Waubet, Bettingstar24, and Betchance were all Malta-licensed sportsbooks that closed owing players tens of thousands of dollars. Betchance attempted a payment plan before eventually folding on that too.
Stryyke was a poker room and sportsbook that started on Ongame, couldn’t pay players, got kicked off, moved to Cake Poker, and kept not paying players until they lost their LGA license in September 2010. Estimated losses to players and affiliates: north of $100,000.
Melita Gaming Network ran a small European poker network. Their most recognizable skin was Fat Bet Poker. Management walked away in April 2011 and the whole thing shut down.
To be fair, the LGA has plenty of legitimate operators. A Malta license doesn’t automatically mean a room is bad. But the LGA hasn’t shown much ability to protect players when things go wrong, and that history matters when you’re trying to decide whether a network in trouble is worth waiting out.
Don’t deposit on Everleaf Gaming
The combination of no public communication, stalled withdrawals for non-US players, a vague seizure story that doesn’t fully add up, and the LGA’s track record makes this one easy to call: stay away from Everleaf Gaming until this gets resolved.
My read is that there are real liquidity problems here, not just a processing hiccup. I wouldn’t be shocked if this network is gone within a few months.