I usually post this report on the 15th each month, but since the 15th is not only a weekend, but the anniversary of Black Friday, it was decided that the post would go up a little early.

Overall payment processing for U.S. facing online poker rooms stayed the same on average since the March US Payment Processing Report. A few states have been banned by various poker rooms in the past month. After restricting new players and deposits from Washington State players, Bovada outright banned them. Cake Poker and Merge Gaming stopped accepting new players from Utah, a state Bovada already restricted.

Grades are based on a curve. The grades are based on the overall processing times for U.S. players and are not based on the average cashout speed for non U.S. poker rooms. Last month's grades are in parenthesis.

Americas Cardroom/True Poker A (A)

Taking the top honor once again is the Winning Poker Network. The best known poker brands on the network are Americas Cardroom and True Poker. Players may cash out by cash transfer and receive the money in 1-3 days. Debit cards may be ordered and delivered in 1-2 weeks for a $25 fee. Once a player receives the card, future cashouts to the debit card are processed in just 1-2 days. Players may request a check which takes 1-2 weeks. Players receive one free check per month for up to $3000, with additional checks in a month carrying a $65 fee. Considering the current processing environment in the U.S. I am very impressed with how consistent Winning Poker Network cashout speeds have been to U.S. players.

Intertops A- (A-)

Intertops is a member of the Cake Poker Network with their own cashier. While not the fastest in U.S. payouts, Intertops should still be given credit for their consistent high marks. The cashout speeds are well above industry average, and easily rival the Winning Poker Network for a close second place. The speeds and methods are exactly the same as they were in March. Bank wires, which carry a $50 fee and a maximum of $5000, are processed in 1-2 weeks. Checks may be requested for a $50 fee, with a maximum cashout of $3000 per check. Cash transfers are received in about 2 days with a maximum transfer of $2500. The fees are steep though for cash transfers. Players will be charged $70 for a transfer of $150-$500, $85 for $501-$1000, and $180 for $1001-$2500. The minimum cashout is $150 for any method at Intertops.

Merge Gaming B (C)

Merge Gaming cashout speeds have been slashed in half in the past month. Last month, players were reporting 5-7 week processing speeds. Those speeds are now 3-4 weeks, with improvement being seen almost every week in the past month. The outlook is positive for Merge Gaming cashout speeds in the next month. Players may request a check of $100-$2500 for a fee of $20 or less, depending on the player's VIP level.

Bovada B- (B+)

Bovada dropped some this month due to increase in cashout speeds by check and bank wire. Players were receiving checks and wires in March in about two weeks. Those speeds are now 3-4 weeks. There is still one quick cashout option at Bodog. Players may request a cash transfer/rapid transfer in 1-2 days if they are willing to pay a service fee of about 10%. Players may only request a cash transfer if they have deposited by that method. MyPayLinq carries the same 10% fee, but takes about two weeks.

Cake Poker D- (D)

Cake Poker had some momentum two months ago when they got their check speed down to three months. Check speeds are now running about 4 months, with some players reporting 4.5 months. Players may request a check once a month for $500-$3000 for free.

Everleaf Gaming F (D-)

Everleaf Gaming is just not getting the job done getting U.S. players paid back, or even communicating with them. A handful of U.S. players are reporting success in opening a bank account outside the U.S. and receiving a cashout that way. A vast majority of U.S. players have received absolutely nothing since the February blocking of U.S. players. Players outside the U.S. are reporting cashout speeds of about 6 weeks, causing concern among players around the world.

BetOnline NR

There is still little info out there about BetOnline poker cashout speeds. While sports bettors receive prompt cashouts, there have been many reports from poker players having issues. Until this can be better clarified, BetOnline still receives no rating.

The bad news keeping coming for online poker players in the State of Utah. Another U.S. friendly poker room has placed restrictions on new player accounts in their state. This time Cake Poker is the poker room that no longer accepts new Utah players. This decision also affects any Cake Poker skins that use the Cake Poker cashier and support system. This includes PAS partner Broadway Tables. Existing players are not affected by this decision.

This is the second poker room in as many days that has made this decision. We reported yesterday that a source within the Merge Gaming Network notified PAS that their network would no longer accept new players from Utah. Existing players were grandfathered in. Last month, Bovada made the decision to restrict Utah player accounts. In the Bovada case, Utah players with accounts were also restricted. While they were allowed to continue to play, their ability to deposit was removed. If a Bovada player in Utah goes bust, they can no longer play for real money at Bovada.

All of these issues in Utah are related to a new law that was signed by Utah Governor Gary Herbert last month that banned all online gambling within the state. This law was passed in anticipation of possible federal legislation. Utah is one of just two states in the U.S. with no form of legalized land based gambling within their borders. Hawaii is the other state with no form of legalized land based gambling.

At this point, there are still two major U.S. online poker choices for Utah residents. Utah players can still create accounts at Intertops, which is on the Cake Poker Network, and on the Winning Poker Network. The Winning Poker Network includes Americas Cardroom and True Poker.

To view our up to date list of states that are banned by U.S. friendly poker rooms, click here.

A source at Merge Gaming has notified us that new players will no longer be accepted from the State of Utah. Last month, Utah Governor Gary Herbert signed a law that banned all online gambling within the state. This was done as a preemptive strike against potential federal legislation that may have forced states to opt in that did not already have existing laws in place pertaining to online gambling.

The Merge Gaming Network already stopped accepting new players from Washington D.C. as well as the states of Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, New York, and Washington. Players in these states that already have Merge Gaming accounts are allowed to continue to play and deposit, but players that do not already have accounts in those states may not create one.

Players in Utah still have several choices. All major online poker rooms that accept U.S. players still accept new players from Utah with the exception of Bovada. Online poker rooms that accept players from Utah include Cake Poker, Intertops and the Winning Poker Network. Bovada allows existing Utah players to play on their site, but does not accept deposits from existing Utah players, nor do they accept new players from the state.

We keep an updated list of U.S. friendly poker rooms and their banned states on this blog. Click here to see the current list. U.S. Players should consider opening accounts at all U.S. friendly poker rooms as they may get shut out at some poker rooms if their state get restricted in the future. In many cases, poker rooms will grandfather in players that have already registered if the player's state gets restricted.

Each month I review the U.S. online poker payment processing situation. The major news since my February post is that Bovada, the U.S. facing brand for the Bodog Network, banned players from the State of Maryland. They also stopped allowing new registrations from New York, Utah, and Washington State. Players from those three states with existing accounts can no longer deposit. The other major processing news from the past month is that there is no news from Everleaf Gaming, although the network has begun to allow U.S. players that have offshore bank accounts to receive a bank wire. That is impossible for virtually all U.S. players. Everleaf Gaming banned U.S. players five weeks ago.

I will continue to grade on a curve. That means that grades will be based on the average processing time between all of the U.S. friendly poker rooms. Last month's grades are in parenthesis.

AmericasCardroom/True Poker A (A-)

Americascardroom and True Poker are sister sites on the Winning Poker Network. The cashouts times are essentially the same today as they were a month ago. Their grade went up due to faster reported check cashouts. Players can request a cash transfer and receive it in 1-4 days. Debit cards, which require an approval process that takes 1-2 weeks before they arrive, are processed in 1-2 days after a player has the card in their possession. These debit cards can be used at ATMs and points of sale and the cards can be reloaded with future cashouts. Checks are processed in 10-14 days. Players can receive one free check per month.

Intertops A- (B)

Intertops moved back up to where they were in January. Intertops dropped slightly after dropping the bank wire option. Bank wires are once again a withdrawal option at Intertops. Unfortunately, they now carry a $50 fee when previously players could receive one free wire a month. Bank wires take 1-2 weeks to process and players can cashout up to $5000 per wire. Players can also request a check for up to $3000 for a fee of $50. This method takes about a week. If a player would like a faster withdrawal, they may opt for a cash transfer. The fees are $70 for up to $500, $85 for $501-$1000, and $180 for $1001-$2500. The minimum withdrawal from Intertops is $150.

Bovada/Bodog B+ (C)

Bovada, the U.S. facing brand for the Bodog Network, has greatly improved their cashout speeds to U.S. players over the last month. There have been no bad checks reported in the past month. Had there not been recent issues, I would have moved Bovada up to A-. If these type of speeds continue into April, they will be. Bank wires are now being processed again with speeds of about two weeks. Players can request a check for up to $2500 that will arrive in about two weeks. Players can also receive a cash transfer in about a day, or even hours. Cash transfers carry a fee of about 10%. MyPayLinq is also available with fees of about 10%.

Merge Gaming C (C-)

Merge Gaming improved their check speeds slightly over the past month. Players are reporting a 5-7 week wait instead of a 6-8 week wait last month. Players may withdraw $100-$2500 for a fee of $20, less for players in the higher VIP tiers.

Cake Poker D (D+)

Cake Poker continues to struggle with cashout delays. U.S. players are only able to cashout by check. Those checks are taking 3-4 months. Players may request one free check per month for up to $3000. Players outside the U.S. are reporting Moneybookers cashouts are taking as long as two weeks.

Everleaf Gaming D- (D)

I am not giving up hope yet for U.S. players to get paid from Everleaf Gaming so they do not yet get an F. If a player had cashed out of Merge Gaming or Cake Poker on the day Everleaf Gaming left the U.S. market, they still would not have their check yet. That factored into my grade here as well. It is looking grim though as no progress has been made in five weeks. Everleaf Gaming has also been virtually silent about the situation. Players outside the U.S. are also dealing with payment delays. Some large payments are taking well over a month to players in the rest of the world. Smaller cashouts are still taking about 2 weeks.

BetOnline - NR

There have been several requests to add BetOnline to the U.S. Payment Processing Report. There is not enough information out there about BetOnline cashouts to U.S. players. I am unable to give BetOnline a rating based on what I have read, but I lean somewhat to the negative side.

Bovada contacted players in Maryland yesterday to tell them that their accounts would be closed effective immediately. Bovada stopped doing business with players in the state. Players were told that they would have their cashouts processed as soon as possible. While there was no doubt about the status of Maryland players, there was some confusion about the status of players in other states. Since Bovada has not made an official announcement, players and the poker media were forced to investigate on their own.

Last week, there were some articles posted that stated Bovada was banning players from Maryland, New York, Utah and Washington. It turned out it was just one of their processors known as MyPayLinq, and it also seemed to only affect Maryland players. It turned out in the end that those articles would be somewhat true. While Maryland players were banned, new players in New York, Utah and Washington State are no longer accepted. If a player chooses one of those states from the drop down box, they receive an error stating players in that state can not register.

With Bovada no longer accepting new Washington residents, there are now no choices for online poker for players in that state unless they have a grandfathered in account. The situation in Maryland is almost as bad, as Cake Poker and a handful of skins are the only choice for Maryland residents.

We will be compiling a list of all U.S. friendly sites and what states they do not accept in the near future. This post will detail each room, and what may have lead to the decision to stop taking players in those states.