Everleaf Network to No Longer Service the United States

It appears that another online poker network has been forced to pull out of the United States. According to a report on PokerFuse.com on Thursday, the Everleaf Network will officially pull out of the United States with an announcement scheduled for Friday, February 10th.

The decision to pull out was prompted in part by a recent closure of an online payment processor based in the United States. Some of the funds from the payment processor were seized by the US Department of Homeland Security. In addition, the site was told to discontinue all operations in the US, or face criminal prosecution. After consulting legal counsel, Everleaf was advised that their best course of action was to pull out of the United States.

Everleaf is currently working with the Department of Homeland Security to ensure that the funds seized are returned to US players and has assured that funds for players worldwide are indeed secure.

The recent decision to close the site could have major implications on the network. Some reports claim that only 20% of the network’s traffic was from the United States while other reports claim that as much as 80% of the traffic was US based. If the latter is true, this could spell a significant loss in player revenue from the site.

The Everleaf Network is currently #27 worldwide according to PokerScout.com with a maximum of 873 cash players daily. In April, the United States Department of Justice indicted PokerStars, Full Tilt, and Absolute Poker. Since that time, the site had seen an overall increase of 20% in player base, but that is much lower than other networks still serving the US. Those networks claim growth ranging from 50 to 80%.

Everleaf becomes just the latest poker network to pull out of the United States. VictoryPoker.net pulled out of the United States following the Black Friday indictments in order to avoid criminal prosecution. Many feel that the recent DOJ opinion regarding the Wire Act will keep them from prosecuting other online poker sites, but if the Everleaf Network is any indication of things to come, online networks serving the US still may be standing on potentially shaky legal ground.

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