Cereus Network Announces Plan to Return US Funds

After months of waiting, USA players who have anxiously awaited news about their funds on the Cereus Network may finally have a small amount of good news to look forward to. According to several published reports, the sites may be close to an arrangement that will help get American players the money sitting in their accounts.

Of the three major poker sites that were targeted on Black Friday, the Cereus Network (named in the indictments as Absolute Poker, but also including Ultimate Bet or UB) has gotten by far the least attention in the aftermath of the April crackdown.

While PokerStars made waves with their quick repayment of American players, and Full Tilt Poker was scorned for their lack of a response – which ultimately led to the site being shut down worldwide – Cereus managed to fly somewhat under the radar. From the outset, players were skeptical about the likelihood of getting their money back from the Cereus Network sites.

While some players immediately doubted Cereus because of their previous poor response to scandals – such as the Superuser scandal that made headlines even outside of poker circles – even more reasonable commentators were quick to point out that the loss of US players would hurt Cereus more than either PokerStars or Full Tilt. Not only did the USA market make up more of Cereus’ player base, but it was also the smallest of the three sites.

However, there’s now some good news for American players hoping to recover their funds from Cereus Network accounts. According to the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, which is the body that licenses the Cereus poker sites, they have held several meetings with Blanca Gaming, operators of the Cereus Poker Network. According to a press release from the KGC, Blanca’s assets may be liquidated, with the proceeds going towards the repayment of American players. While the plan still has to be approved by the US District Court in charge of the case, it is a rare bit of good news for Cereus’ players, who have heard very little about the possibility of being repaid.