Spanish Bank Offers $1.82B to Madoff Victims

Trustee says bank enabled fraud by ignoring warning signs

(NEWSER) - Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme survived for so long because HSBC ignored "red flags" and kept funneling investors' money to the fraudster, says the trustee trying to reclaim money for Madoff's victims. Irving Picard is suing the bank and a group of feeder funds for at least $9 billion, the New York Times reports. More»

Peter Madoff subject of 'wide-ranging' Ponzi scheme inquiry

(NEWSER) - Finance's most-tarnished family name took another hit yesterday when it emerged that Peter Madoff is the target of a criminal probe relating to big brother Bernie's Ponzi scheme. A court filing states that the Manhattan US attorney's office is conducting an "active and wide ranging" probe of Peter, who was chief compliance officer at Bernie's firm, the New York Post reports. More»

Ponzi kingpin now sharing cell with drug offender

(NEWSER) - Bernie Madoff ran the druggiest, most decadent securities fraud in town, according to court papers filed yesterday. Madoff's offices were so awash in cocaine—paid for with investors' money—that it was nicknamed "the North Pole," and the firm hosted drug-fueled parties featuring topless waitresses, according to a lawsuit filed by swindled investors. Nuggets about Madoff's precipitous fall from the high life are tucked throughout the 276-page document seeking restitution from Madoff, family members and other financial entities who knew bout the scam, according to the suit. More»

(NEWSER) - Investigators see yesterday's guilty plea of Bernard Madoff's right-hand man as a major breakthrough in their efforts to untangle the elaborate Ponzi scheme, BusinessWeek reports. Frank DiPascali, chief financial officer at Madoff's firm, has promised to cooperate with prosecutors and is expected to name other people involved in the scam and to help trace assets Madoff may have stashed around the world. More»

Rulings in response to lawsuits also extend freeze to feeder funds

(NEWSER) - A appeals judge yesterday nixed a deal that gave Bernard Madoff brother Peter a $10,000 monthly allowance out of his frozen assets, reports the New York Daily News. The ruling, which came in response to a suit from a law student who lost his $500,000 inheritance, prevents him from accessing his fortune to pay his expenses. His outraged lawyer complained that his client can't even buy a cup of coffee. More»