With an estimated $60 million deficit, Full Tilt Poker has been in desperate need of liquidity since Black Friday on April 15. The company has been actively pursuing potential investors and bank loans, all to no avail. Enter Jack Binion, who reportedly is considering making a major stake in Full Tilt.
Binion is one the most powerful players in the casino industry. He became President of Binion’s Horseshoe Casino and Hotel in 1963, when he was only 26 years old. As a member of both the American Gaming Hall of Fame and Poker Hall of Fame, and heir to the wealth of casino entrepreneur and mobster Benny Binion, Jack Binion is in a unique position. In a single investment, Binion could save Full Tilt and take significant ownership of its operations. Binion would assume a great deal of risk in any deal. A $60 million deficit is a difficult proposition in any business, but reports and rumors have been circling for days that this is a risk Binion is seriously considering.
According to multiple reports, both Jack Binion and Phil Ivey have been in Ireland recently to meet with Full Tilt executives. If Full Tilt secures a major investor like Binion, players could expect their money to be returned. Players will be forced to wait on cash outs until Full Tilt is able to secure a surge in liquidity. If that were to be provided by an American powerhouse figure like Binion, the possibility of Full Tilt’s return to the USA may be quickened. Full Tilt has announced that it has “pending deals with several parties that would put money back in players’ pockets.”