|  | | 2008 News and Press Releases | | |
HEADLINE NEWS:
Madoff’s ‘Lie’ Ensnares Victims From Paris to Tokyo
Jon Menon and Charles Penty
Bloomberg. December 15, 2008
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EXCERPT: Bernard Madoff’s scam that allegedly cost investors $50 billion ensnared firms from London and Paris to Tokyo. HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest bank, has $1 billion at risk after providing financing to funds that invested with Madoff, the London-based bank said today. Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan’s largest brokerage, has 27.5 billion yen ($302 million) of exposure to Madoff’s funds, while France’s BNP Paribas SA has as much as 350 million euros at risk, the banks said. […] BNP Paribas fell 10 percent in Paris trading after reporting its Madoff exposure and suffering a legal setback in its plan to buy the Belgian operations of Fortis. The Brussels Court of Appeals ruled Dec. 12 that the sale of Fortis assets must be put to investors for a vote before Feb. 12. The court decision complicates BNP Paribas’s plan to complete the purchase quickly and preserve Fortis’s customer base. Fortis Bank Nederland (Holding) NV said it could lose as much as 1 billion euros ($1.4 billion) because of Madoff. While neither Fortis nor its subsidiaries have direct holdings with Madoff, some units provided loans to funds that invested in the failed firm, the bank said in a statement today. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, Spain’s second-biggest lender, said it may face up to 300 million euros in losses from the hedging of structured products linked to Madoff. BBVA acted for other financial institutions and investors to set up products linked to third-party funds that had invested in Madoff Investment Securities, the Bilbao, Spain-based lender said in a filing today to market regulators in Madrid. BBVA has no direct investments in Madoff. Banco Santander SA, Europe’s second-biggest bank by market value, said yesterday its hedge fund unit invested 2.33 billion euros of client funds with Madoff. |
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