Amaya ordered to pay US$870m fine in Kentucky

The state could penalise the company by seeking damages on behalf of the poker players who lost money in PokerStars.

US.-  Toronto listed gaming operator Amaya Inc.  has been ordered by a Kentucky judge to pay US$870 million in the state’s compensation dispute over allegedly illegal operations from its subsidiary, PokerStars, in the US state between 2006 and 2011.

Amaya Inc., which bought PokerStars’ owner Rational Group last year and also owns the Full Tilt brands, will launch its appeal against the Kentucky State compensation in January 2016. The company has been told that until the debt is paid off, it will draw an interest of 12 percent per year.

Kentucky began its action against PokerStars back in 2010, claiming that the company had illegally provided gambling services to 34,000 state players between October 2006 and April 2011. In October 2006 the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) was introduced. Judge Thomas Wingate ruled in favour of Kentucky’s compensation claim and allowed Kentucky State to triple its damages claim from US$290 million to US$870 million.