Madoff Trustee Sues Medici Bank ahead of schedule Clawback Today

Liquidate the company administrator Bernard L. Madoff 's investment made more than $ 50 billion in so-called clawback suits to compensate victims of fraud scammer since his arrest two years ago for planning the largest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history.

Irving Picard, the trustee, filed hundreds of lawsuits against banks, funds, investors and others who allegedly benefited from decades of Madoff fraud. Among the defendants was Mark Madoff, the son, who was found dead yesterday in Manhattan of an apparent suicide.

The deadline for filing claims expired at midnight Picard. So far, it has recovered about $ 2.5 billion. Last week, who claimed the Medici Bank AG and its founder, Sonja Kohn and Bank Austria, UniCredit SpA and dozens of other parties. He is seeking $ 19,600,000,000 of them, which potentially could triple to 58.8 billion U.S. dollars under the influence of the Crime and Corrupt Organizations Act. This is the biggest by Picard.

Kohn, 62, whom Picard Madoff called "soul mate criminal, uses a relationship with the financier that began in 1985 to help build the Vienna-based bank, the feeding of more than $ 9.1 million dollars money from investors in his company, Picard said in a complaint last week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York.

"The illegal scheme enriched Kohn, family, and dozens of other individuals and entities, including the largest banks in Austria and Italy, at the expense of mass BLMIS and on the backs of victims of Madoff," Picard said in documents the court, referring to Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC.

Increased profitability

In the 153-page complaint against Kohn, Picard said he told investors he was very close Madoff and could provide a higher return on investments made through your company. Instead, Madoff secret payment Kohn, who knew Madoff was running a scam to funnel money into the Ponzi scheme, Picard said.

According to the president, Kohn spent very complex plot focused on the bank of the Medici, parts of which overlap with the company's own fraudulent Madoff, the release of $ 9,100,000,000 on the Ponzi scheme. Were channeled 4 billion U.S. dollars by the total supply of funds including Primea Thema International Fund, Prime Fund Herald Alpha Fund, the Fund senator and Herald (Lux), which put all the money of its investors Madoff, according to Picard.

Shortly before Madoff confessed in December 2008, Kohn retired $ 536,000,000 of the signing of Madoff, Picard said, and took steps to conceal his connection to the money manager.

Bank Austria

Medici Bank operates as a branch of Bank Austria, which manages its accounts, according to Picard. In return, Bank Austria, which is named as a defendant, was paid at least $ 31 million.

2020 Medici Bank changed its name after Austria Medici Financial Markets AG withdrew the banking license of the company, due to insufficient capital in May 2009.

Andreas Theiss, Kohn attorney and the Medici in Vienna, said in an interview that, "Kohn and Medici are victims of Madoff. What is required in the lawsuit has nothing to do with reality."

UniCredit said in an emailed statement on behalf of himself, Bank Austria and its fund management unit of Pioneer Global Asset Management SpA, which is also a defendant, who will fight the lawsuit.

His "lawyers are reviewing the matter and to take care of it through the normal process of legal tender," the bank said in a statement.

The ousted president

The former chief executive of UniCredit, Alessandro Profumo officer, who was expelled from the Italian lender in September, also is named as a defendant in the lawsuit.

"The allegations are totally baseless and will defend itself vigorously," said a spokesman for Profumo.

Madoff, 72, who pleaded guilty, is serving 150 years in federal prison in North Carolina.

At the time of his arrest, his statements reflect the accounts of 4900 with $ 65 billion in balances exist. Investors lost about $ 20 billion in capital.

HSBC Holdings Plc was sued this month for $ 9 billion Picard, who denounced Europe's biggest lender fraud allowed Madoff. Picard previously sued JPMorgan Chase & Co. for 6.4 billion U.S. dollars of bank loans in New York, with the complicity of fraud.

Earlier last week, Citigroup Inc. 's Citibank, Bank of America Corp.' s unit of Merrill Lynch and five other banks were sued by the trustee to recover more than $ 1 billion.

ABN Amro

The banks, which include Natixis SA, Fortis Prime Fund Solutions Bank (Ireland) Ltd., ABN Amro Bank NV, Bank Nomura International Plc. and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, received money through feeder funds Madoff when he knew or should have known, that investment was a fraud Madoff, Picard said in a statement at the time.

Picard also sued UBS AG and Tremont Group Holdings Inc., the hedge fund firm owned by Oppenheimer Acquisition Corp., on loans that benefited from Madoff. Picard, along with the settlement operations in the United Kingdom Madoff, sued former directors of the unit in a London court seeking at least $ 80 million.

All banks and companies have denied wrongdoing and vowed to fight the claims.

Also last week, one of the first clients of Bernard Madoff, along with 19 family members, potential lawsuits settled by agreeing to forfeit $ 625 million in profits from investment fraud scammer.

Son in Law

Carl Shapiro, a Boston philanthropist, had an account in principle Madoff firm in 1961. His son-in-law, Robert Jaffe, is the former vice president of Cohmad Securities Corp., a power back who share offices with the signing of Madoff.

Picard also sued the owners of the baseball team New York Mets for the return of the profits from their investments in Madoff. Defendants and Picard confirmed that talks are under.

On December 10, Picard said in a statement that Frank sued Michael Avellino and Real, two certified public accountants and members of the family, more than $ 900 million, in search of money to be withdrawn from Madoff firm . Avellino & Real Picard asked "one of the first facilitators" Madoff.

Picard December 10 announced that it had made more than $ 80 million against a group of charities and nonprofit organizations that benefited from its investments in Madoff.

Announced an agreement with Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization of America Inc., add $ 45 million for distribution to victims of Madoff, Picard said in a statement.

former chief financial officer of Hadassah, Sheryl Weinstein wrote in a book published last year about a romance she had with Madoff.