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Equity Poker Network

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History of Equity Poker Network

Full Flush Poker was the first skin on the Equity Poker Network.  It was also the most known.  Full Flush Poker was a member of the Equity Poker Network from its first day to the last.

The Equity Poker Network launched in November 2013.  Other skins on the network shortly after it launched included 5 Dimes, Integer Poker and Heritage Sports. Poker Host joined the network in April 2014.

It did not take long for troubles to surface at the Equity Poker Network.  The network started to pressure skins to ban winning players by withholding rake from its partners.  This infuriated the online poker community.  Equity Poker permitted players to offer up to 50 percent rakeback.  Skins advertised on poker forums full of serious poker players.  It was unfathomable that the network would then ban winning players.

Skins ran for the exit doors after players fled the network.  Integer Poker closed in May 2014.  5 Dimes left in November 2014.  Poker Host left a month after that.

The Equity Poker Network limped along with two skins; Full Flush Poker and Heritage Sports.  Full Flush Poker stopped paying players in 2015.  The lone exceptions were MoneyGram transfers for under $400.  All players with serious money never saw a dime.  Heritage Sports paid players as expected and absorbed any losses it experienced on Equity Poker.

Full Flush Poker abruptly shut down on September 30, 2016.  It blamed software providers, web hosts and technical issues.  This all turned out to be a lie.  In fact, Full Flush Poker didn’t even own its main domain.  That forwarded to a competitor’s website when the site stopped paying.  The site simply spent all player deposits for operations.

Full Flush made up a mountain of false statements claiming that it would reappear in October and then November 2016.  Instead, the site deleted its social media accounts and disappeared.  Full Flush Poker players lost every penny deposited on the site.

While Full Flush was stiffing its players, Heritage Sports covered all player losses.  The site removed poker from its list of offerings on September 30, 2016 and moved all funds to its related sports betting accounts.

Lessons Learned from the Failure of the Equity Poker Network

There were several lessons to be learned from the collapse of the Equity Poker Network.  The main red flag was the banning of winning players.  Serious sites will understand that there are winning online poker players on any platform.  Equity Poker seemed to want to force these players out as opposed to letting them play and using them as props.  Another clear problem was that it was licensed in Curacao.  That regulator is a joke.  It is just a web host and not any serious regulator.

What Equity Poker Was Like

The cash games and tournaments at Equity Poker were very loose.  That is probably due to the fact that winning players had accounts closed.  The games were very fishy towards the end because players knew that the chips were worthless.

The software at Equity Poker was average.  The platform suffered no major crashes or outages.  On the other hand, the software at Equity Poker offered few features.

Scandals Related to Equity Poker

The Equity Poker Network was licensed in Curacao.  That gave it many connections to failed poker sites.  That is because a poker site holding a license in Curacao is the equivalent to not having a license at all.  Curacao regulators are nonexistent.  That government takes fees from gaming sites without providing any real service beyond being an internet service provider.

Lock Poker was the most notable failure in Curacao.  The site was a scam from the beginning.  The site’s owners tried to claim otherwise.  Lock Poker scammed players on Merge Gaming by promising the impossible in terms of rakeback and bonuses.  After Merge Gaming kicked Lock Poker off the network, the scam site claimed it acquired Revolution Gaming.  That turned out to be a false claim.

Win Cake, once known as Cake Poker, was a skin on Revolution Gaming.  That site was a scam for its entire 10-year existence.  It later came out that Lock Poker never owned the network.  That is when Lock Poker moved to its own platform.  It failed to pay players.  It is estimated that Lock Poker owes at least $10 million to its players after it failed in April 2015.

Full Flush Poker is another site related to the Equity Poker Network.  That’s why most believe that Full Flush Poker management was involved with Equity Poker.  It was one of last two skins on the platform when it failed.  The other – Heritage Sports – paid all players.

Related Failed Sites

Timeline of Events

• 2013
  Equity Poker Network opens with skins that include 5Dimes, Heritage Sports, Integer Poker and Full Flush Poker.
• 2014
  Poker Host leaves Merge Gaming moves to Equity Poker.
• 2014
  Equity Poker skins start to ban players.
• 2014
  Integer Poker closes, players moved to Full Flush.
• 2014
  5Dimes leaves Equity Poker.
• 2014
  Poker Host leaves Equity Poker and moves to Winning Poker.
• 2015
  Players start to complain about slow payments.
• 2016
  It becomes obvious that Full Flush Poker has cash flow problems.
• 2016
  Equity Poker closes. Heritage Sports pays players while Full Flush Poker stiffs all depositors.
• 2016
  Full Flush Poker claims that it would return with new software. That never happened.

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