Amid reports of discussions between the two, PokerStars looks set to buy Full Tilt Poker.

The deal, which would see the end of their disputes with the US Department of Justice, would be part of a broader settlement of a civil case brought by the DoJ, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

It also confirmed that a deal agreed at the end of last year by French investment group Groupe Bernard Tapie to acquire Full Tilt fell through last week due to complications over terms for paying back players. It is thought that the new deal would see players be able to retrieve funds they had deposited with Full Tilt.

A statement released yesterday by a PokerStars spokesperson on its blog declined to comment on the matter, saying that “settlement discussions are always confidential” and that the company is unable to comment.