On April 15, 2011, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York seized and shut down Pokerstars and several of its competitors' sites, alleging that the sites were violating federal bank fraud and money laundering laws.

Pokerstars is banned in China, Israel, and all Muslim countries in the Middle East. Most Asian players are from: India, excluding states where online poker is legal: Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Assam, Odisha, Sikkim, and Gujarat.