It’s been two weeks since we’ve provided an update on the Full Tilt Poker acquisition discussions with Groupe Bernard Tapie. If you’ll recall, one day after the Alderney Gambling Control Commission revoked Full Tilt Poker’s license, the online poker room’s parent company announced a conditional acquisition agreement with Tapie. In an exclusive interview with PocketFives on Tuesday, Tapie lawyer Behnam Dayanim insisted he was “optimistic” the sale would be successful.

Players on PocketFives, TwoPlusTwo, and elsewhere have been understandably anxious to learn the fate of Tapie’s negotiations with Full Tilt and the U.S. Department of Justice, which are ongoing simultaneously. Purportedly, Tapie’s acquisition of what was once the second largest online poker site in the world is contingent upon the room striking a deal with the DOJ, possibly to lower the civil penalties stemming from Black Friday.

Dayanim told PocketFives, “It’s a process. The process is still going on and hopefully we’ll have some good news to report.” Although Dayanim was not able to share specific details about the ongoing discussions between Tapie and the DOJ, he’s hopeful an accord can be reached soon: “I remain optimistic that we’ll be able to reach an outcome that allows for the Tapie group to proceed with the proposed plan.”

The “proposed plan,” according to Dayanim, involves the repayment of Full Tilt players worldwide. In an earlier interviewwith PocketFives, Dayanim asserted, “The current proposed deal would involve repayment of players. It’s Tapie’s intention to arrange for repayment of players.”

Threads that have popped up on PocketFives and TwoPlusTwo in recent days have centered on Tapie officials contacting players with large bankrolls locked up on Full Tilt to discuss several repayment options. These include receiving shares in a reincarnated Full Tilt, receiving a percentage on the dollar, and Full Tilt paying out in full over a prolonged period of time.

Although it does not appear that Tapie has assumed control of Full Tilt, posters in a thread on PocketFives took the phone calls placed to several players as a positive sign. One poster wrote, “Definitely good news. It already sounds like Bernard Tapie is taking a more astute and hands-on approach to recovering the company.”

Dayanim reinforced that Tapie is still finalizing its deal with Full Tilt Poker, although the specifics of the agreement are not publicly known. He explained, “We’re still working with Full Tilt Poker. We have a signed agreement that allows us to do the things we need to do to ensure we’re comfortable. We’re working productively with that company, but any agreement ultimately depends on resolutions with the DOJ. We have to have that process work its way through to completion, but I’m optimistic right now.”

The DOJ labeling Full Tilt Poker a “global Ponzi scheme” came up several times during Tuesday’s hearing in the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade on Capitol Hill. After all, the lack of oversight of Full Tilt appears to be one of the new rallying points for legalization and regulation of the online poker industry in the United States.

When asked about the Ponzi scheme allegations, Poker Players Alliance (PPA) Chairman Alfonse D’Amato (pictured) responded in Tuesday’s subcommittee hearing, “The one way to deal with Full Tilt Poker and others who have taken advantage of the system is to provide a tough, strong, enforceable licensing bill. There should be a requirement where [player deposits]are segregated and placed in a separate account. Had we had legislation, we could have prevented players from being taken advantage of.”

The DOJ claimed that Full Tilt officials paid out over $440 million to its pros and executives while owing players nearly $400 million. Full Tilt also indirectly contributed to the PPA. According to Forbes, “The PPA claims that Full Tilt Poker’s financial support of the PPA came through the Interactive Gaming Council, a Vancouver-based online gambling advocacy group that spent as much as $2.49 million annually lobbying in Washington.”

Forbes added that Full Tilt stopped sending money to the IGC, and thus indirectly to the PPA, in the beginning of 2011. D’Amato clarified that the PPA does not currently receive funding from Full Tilt or UB, the latter of which has also not paid back U.S. players following Black Friday nor issued any statement since May.

Stay tuned to PocketFives for the latest online poker news and legislative updates.