GGPoker Extends Olive Branch to Banned Players

On Sept. 19, 2025, international online poker site GGPoker announced an Olive Branch Initiative. The purpose of this is to allow banned players to be reinstated to the site. There have been two previous Olive Branch Initiatives: one in August and September 2020 and another in July and August 2022.

How the Initiative Works

Individuals who believe they deserve a second chance at GGPoker or who think they were banned in error must submit an application by Oct. 1. To do so, they have to send a message from the email address associated with their banned account containing the subject line “Olive Branch Application.” Applicants must include the following in their email:

• The GGPoker account nickname
• Their full name
• A detailed explanation of why they're seeking to have their account reviewed
• Proof of ID, Proof of Address, and a selfie holding ID

Every application will be reviewed separately, and then the applicants will be notified of the outcomes by Nov. 1.

Further Details

GGPoker begins its statement regarding the Olive Branch Initiative reaffirming its zero-tolerance attitude regarding actions that violate its Security and Ecology Policy. They have already removed many people who have violated this policy, and the poker site continues to stand by this approach. The statement continues:

However, just as the poker industry grows and matures, we recognize that people can also change. Players who once contributed unsportsmanlike behavior may have since evolved, learned from their mistakes, and developed a genuine commitment to fair play.

In this spirit of growth and second chances, we are announcing the Olive Branch Initiative. This carefully structured initiative offers a reinstatement path for players previously banned from the GGPoker Network and a secondary review for players who feel wrongly accused.

GGPoker does not guarantee reinstatement for anyone. Each applicant's case will be reviewed along such criteria as the details of the original violation, the amount of time that has elapsed, and “demonstration of genuine change.”

Is It Reasonable?

GGPoker touts this program as a way of giving a second chance to users who have reformed their ways. It also serves as a mechanism for overturning bans that were erroneous to begin with.

However, detractors contend that the Olive Branch Initiative merely reduces the penalties for cheating and therefore makes the games less honest and safe. Some question how GGPoker will be able to determine if a player has demonstrated “genuine change” by reading the text of an application submitted through email.

As X user “Bandit Sam” commented:

Why Is GGPoker Doing This?

A close look at GGPoker's Security and Ecology Policy may yield hints as to why the room thinks it's appropriate to unban certain accounts. Within this document, we find the expected prohibitions on using Real Time Assistance software, bots, collusion, et cetera.

However, the rules at GGPoker go well beyond what most of its competitors try to police. For instance, such activities as Bum Hunting, Hit and Running, and Predatory Behavior are disallowed according to the Security and Ecology Policy.

Many of these terms don't come with clear definitions. In some sense, Predatory Behavior and table selection (i.e., Bum Hunting) are inherent to good poker strategy. It's not clear where the line is drawn at GGPoker.

Undoubtedly, some accounts were banned for behaviors that their owners did not realize were disallowed. Others may have been caught up in overzealous crackdowns by site security, which, upon further review, involved mistaken penalties being issued.

Perhaps GGPoker's Olive Branch program is a subtle recognition by management of the fact that some of its punishments may have been handed out too freely. This initiative may give it a mechanism for correcting mistakes while not losing too much face publicly.

What We Think

It's our considered view that GGPoker's Olive Branch Initiative makes no sense.

If GGPoker's site security personnel are sharp enough to make hardly any mistakes, then a special program to correct their faults is unnecessary. On the other hand, if the Security and Ecology Policy is so vague and unclear as to lead to many errors, then all decisions about it should be subject to review and possible reversal at any time, not just during designated two-month periods.

There is, of course, the option to rewrite the Security and Ecology Policy so that it's clearer and more precise. But we all know how online poker operators tend to work. Let's not get ahead of ourselves here.

By saying that there's a “zero-tolerance stance” against proscribed actions and then opening an avenue for forgiveness of these same transgressions, GGPoker is sending mixed signals. This causes confusion and uncertainty among the player base. Reddit's OrphanFries explained what many are thinking:

Find an Alternate Site

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