Investors in “feeder funds” whose money was funneled into Bernard Madoff’s fraudulent securities firm may receive nearly $500 million to recoup part of their lost investments, a panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled Friday.
The judges unanimously rejected an attempt by Irving Picard, trustee for the Liquidation of Bernard Madoff Investment Securities (BLMIS), to void settlements designed to return money to investors in Fairfield Greenwich Ltd. and in two funds operated by hedge fund manager J. Ezra Merkin, Ariel Fund Ltd., Ascot Fund Ltd. and Gabriel Capital LP.
