not true. i was told 2 months ago by someone that they had to stave off a shutdown by the us govt at the 11th hour and that it was basically just a matter of time before the hammer dropped.

I kinda prepared for this a while ago so I'm not too sad unless moneybookers decides to screw me.

I have an account in the Caribbean, I'm not going to name the island as I'm sure most islands are not much different. It's not easy but it's safe for now although the bank that i'm with is owned by Scotiabank, I'm considering switching to a private bank on the island but I'm weighing the options.


I needed a passport and documentation that I was applying for a permit to be a resident of the island. The application for a residency on the island is very simple, you need to show that you have $250k in an account somewhere, that's it. It was really easy, I had to sit down with someone at immigration, I provided the proof, I submitted the permits, showed them to the bank and presto...

I can't imagine that other islands would be much more difficult, fwiw I'm pretty sure the island I am with is more bureaucratic than most but that could just be my sentiment while trying to deal with these morons.

I had random annoyances at first like a $5k per day wire limit to and from my account but after 6 months these were lifted when I went to speak with a bank rep.

I also keep USD cash in a safety box there which I'm considering switching for gold or silver :S.

if you want specific details you can pm me and i'll elaborate further but I don't want to just post steps to do it straight out. I'll help as much as I can without potentially screwing myself up.

--Edit--

I forgot to mention that you do not need to actually go through with the application. Just submitting the application is enough, the procedure takes a year any way in which time you can just no longer go through with it. You've already got your account there and you just need to abide by the island's visa laws (i.e. you can't stay longer than x days at a time) which is generally 90 on most islands for ppl with a passport from a first world nation.

Now you tell us!

I'm sorry for all the american's that lost money here.. Fwiw i've been living in miami for the past year or so and having a blast, I'm going to have to find a new home now...

I don't think anyone can claim that online poker wont be easier after the americans are shut out, however guarentees will probably take a nose dive, I'm very very very anxious to see how this will affect the SCOOP as I've been looking forward to it forever. What are the odds that stars keeps it's current guarentees on each tourny after this debacle?

Also, the sites knew this was coming, it's kinda sad that people didn't really say anything publicly but I heard from a friend that's decently high up at FTP about 2 months ago that the people in the know were preparing for government intervention... I personally didn't post anything about it as I don't have any street cred on 2+2 but if Mikech knew, I'm curious as to why he didn't post about it. I'd imagine he told his close friends to prepare but I feel really bad for the 1-2 grinders that had their life roll online. I feel bad for those that have reported their taxes honestly and are now unable to withdraw the money to pay.

This sucks, I'll see you guys in Spain or the Caribbean. St. Maarten is a very nice island, Aruba is beautiful, Curacao is more developed and has more to do on a daily basis than either of the above. Also, live poker games at any of the above are pretty good, St. Maarten specifically. Ask Eric Cajelas or however you spell his name.

exactly. Someone with credibility at 2+2 should have begun some kind of information campaign in my opinion. You didn't have to scream it to heavens, but at least some kind of 'hey guys, just pull 10k from your online roll juuuuuuuuusssstttt in case' if just a few ppl didn't have to worry about paying rent or cars or whatever, i think it would have been a good thing.

I know that ppl had 'seen this coming' in the general sense, but there had been a status quo for so long that it had kinda been put to the back of the mind.


You couldn't even call this a black swan really... more of a grey swan, but still sucky none the less...

I guess that is why some name pros are so unconcerned. Sick Life.

****ing scott tom listed as an owner/operator of absolute.
WTF.

i was given that information in confidence. i don't play online and have had no funds online at all, so there was no conflict of interest/insider-info benefit to me.

f bill frist for real. bruce pearl too

You're really surprised here?

Absolute is the most corrupt pos organization that has ever touched software.

If poker were legalized those mother****ers would have been in jail by now...

but ppl still play there.

I have just had a look at my bank web site, HSBC:
http://www.offshore.hsbc.com/1/2/int...10_hm_opt_wbwu

Minimum on account: £25k
The list of documents to send to the bank are: the application form (can be dowloaded), a proof of identity, a proof of address and some existing bank statements

FYI, the main banks in the UK are HSBC, Lloyds, Barclays and the Royal bank of Scotland.

HSBC offshore accounts are ridiculously tedious to open. They take like 6 weeks if I remember correctly.

+1 to ST. Maarten.

St. John is my fav island but I imagine the internet being slower than a 14.4 modem give how small a population it is.

Does anyone have any input on what's going to happen with Netteller? I'm considering putting all my money there, but people are telling me they could get sued and collapse or something. Sorry if this has already been done.

Not if you visit a branch. Usually its just a passport and proof of address and you can get the account that day. Each country is different though and has different rules and regulations. They are all called 'HSBC' but are each operated as separate banks bound by the laws of the nation they are in.

If you have $100k+ HSBC Premier is basically the nuts and pretty easy to open if you go in person. If you have an HSBC Premier account in one country, setting them up in other countries is a snap and has no minimums.

Getting setup in another country with bank account/address/phone number etc is not that hard if you have means - especially if you are willing to go to another country to do it. Just takes time...and money.

is there any weight to what these people are saying about neteller?

FYI, I've been dealing with the exact opposite with Lloyd's TSB for over a year now. Worst costumer service and by far the worst bank I've ever dealt with. Takes over 3 months to get one thing done w/ over L50k in there.

Anyone else find the 'neat' ascending numbers from Page 37 of the Indictment xinteresting?

1.5B for PS, 1 B for ftp, and $500 M for AP/UB ... almost feels like DOJ picked convenient amounts based on their opinion of market share

so i totally forgot getting a check from FTP.
what are the chances i'll be able to cash this now?

6

yea I'll do 79 cents on Stars. same deal here...

highly unlikely. Neteller is super safe imo.

Um... no. Opening banking accounts as an American is ridiculously hard these days. I tried to open accounts in multiple countries and they wouldn't do it as soon as they looked at my tax return and saw professional gambling. This event will hurt the perception of online poker even further. You are going to open an account and then start receiving large wire transfers from unknown sources from god knows what locations? Then you will want to transfer it back to the USA quickly. That looks a whole lot like money laundering. But keep us posted if you have better luck than I had.

NETeller made a deal with the US Govt a few years back, surely they are among the safest of all payment processors atm.

Wish i found this out earlier seems like its too late now