Ninth Pro Rata Interim Distribution of Recovered Funds to Madoff Claims Holders Commences; Totals Approximately $620.9 Million
February 22 2018 - 1:00PM
Business Wire
Aggregate Distributions Total More Than
$11.4 Billion
Press release from the offices of Irving H. Picard, SIPA
Trustee for the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment
Securities LLC (BLMIS), and Stephen P. Harbeck, President and Chief
Executive Officer of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation
(SIPC)
Irving H. Picard, Securities Investor Protection Act (SIPA)
Trustee for the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment
Securities LLC (BLMIS), announced that the ninth pro rata interim
distribution from the Customer Fund to eligible BLMIS customers
commenced today.
The SIPA Trustee is distributing approximately $620.9 million on
a pro rata basis to BLMIS account holders with allowed claims,
bringing the aggregate amount distributed to eligible claimants to
more than $11.4 billion, which includes more than $844.3 million in
committed advances from the Securities Investor Protection
Corporation (SIPC). The ninth pro rata interim distribution, when
combined with the prior eight distributions, represents 63.904
percent of each allowed claim amount – unless that claim has been
fully satisfied – and will be paid to record holders of allowed
claims as of January 31, 2018.
“Each distribution is another significant victory as we work to
unwind and bring relief for the harm done in the Madoff Ponzi
scheme,” said SIPC President and CEO Stephen P. Harbeck. “All of
the funds recovered by the SIPA Trustee go to the victims of the
Madoff fraud. And with the continued success of the Trustee and his
legal team, we are hopeful there will be further distributions in
2018. It is important to note that every single penny recovered by
the Madoff Recovery Initiative goes to satisfy allowed customer
claims. SIPC picks up all the costs of the Madoff Recovery
Initiative as the Securities Investor Protection Act directs.”
The ninth pro rata interim distribution was reached as a result
of settlements and recoveries achieved by the SIPA Trustee, his
Chief Counsel David J. Sheehan, and their legal teams since the
last interim distribution in February 2017. The most notable was
the recovery agreement of approximately $687 million with the Thema
International Fund as well as the approximately $370 million
recovery agreements with the Lagoon and Thema Funds.
As of January 31, 2018 and since his appointment in December
2008, the SIPA Trustee has received $12.846 billion as a result of
recoveries and agreements to recover. These recoveries exceed
similar efforts related to prior Ponzi scheme recoveries, in terms
of dollar value and percentage of stolen funds recovered.
Ultimately, 100 percent of the SIPA Trustee’s recoveries will be
allocated to the Customer Fund for distribution to BLMIS customers
– both direct and indirect – with allowed claims. None of the money
recovered is used to pay administrative costs. All trustee, legal
and accounting fees, as well as administrative expenses, are paid
by SIPC.
More information on overall recoveries to date and the ongoing
liquidation can be found on the SIPA Trustee’s website:
www.madofftrustee.com.
Messrs. Harbeck, Picard and Sheehan would like to thank
BakerHostetler attorneys Oren Warshavsky, Seanna Brown and Heather
Wlodek, who worked on the ninth pro rata interim distribution and
its related filings, as well as BakerHostetler, Windels Marx and
all of the attorneys and professionals whose work has led to the
distribution. They would also like to thank Vineet Sehgal and his
colleagues at AlixPartners, as well as Josephine Wang, Kevin Bell,
Nathanael Kelley, and their colleagues at SIPC, for their ongoing
work and participation in the Madoff Recovery Initiative
distributions.
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180222006147/en/
Media:Heather Wlodek, for the SIPA Trustee for the
liquidation of BLMIShwlodek@bakerlaw.com212-589-4663orKristen
McCaughan, for SIPCkmccaughan@mcginnandcompany.com202-276-4961