Banks and investment funds across the world lined up on Monday to admit investing billions of dollars in the companies of Bernard Madoff, whom US authorities accused of masterminding a massive fraud.
Britain’s HSBC was the latest bank to join the growing list, saying it had exposure of around $1 billion, making it one of the biggest victims of the alleged $50 billion fraud. Royal Bank of Scotland and Man Group in the UK, Japan’s Nomura and France’s Natixis also said they were hit by the worldwide scandal.
Financial companies, reeling after a year of enormous writedowns on bad credit assets, have so far tallied up more than $10 billion in direct and indirect exposure to the possible fraud by Madoff, the 70-year old trader who was arrested on Thursday. “There is a broader danger here for the industry,” an equity analyst said.
“This huge fraud, supposedly in blue-chip funds, is going to make people nervous, and you’ve already seen massive redemptions,” the analyst said. Shares in France’s Natixis were down 4.7% after it said it had as much as E450 million ($605 million) of exposure to the fiasco. The wider DJ Stoxx banking index was 0.9% lower.
US prosecutors and regulators have accused Madoff, a former chairman of the Nasdaq Stock Market, of running the fraud through his investment advisory business, which managed at least one hedge fund. Man Group, the world’s largest listed hedge fund manager, said it was exposed to Madoff through its fund of funds business RMF, which has $360 million invested in funds directly or indirectly sub-advised by Madoff. BNP Paribas and Santander detailed potential losses on Sunday, and others joined at the start of the trading week, with Italy’s UniCredit showing exposure of around E75 million.
RBS said its potential loss could amount to some £400 million ($595 million), if it assumed that the value of its assets in Madoff’s firm were nil.
Its exposure to the scandal was through trading and collateralised lending to funds of hedge funds invested in the group, the bank said in a statement.
Hedge funds are already struggling after a year that has badly damaged their boast that they can make money whichever way the market turns.
Source: Agencies
Showing posts with label Madoff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Madoff. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
After credit crisis world now rattled by Madoff scandal
European investors face billions of dollars losses in the wake of disclosure of "Ponzi" scheme run by Bernard Madoff, now being investigated by the American authorities.
European banks, including Spain's Grupo Santander SA and France's BNP Paribas, were quoted by the Wall Street Journal as saying that their clients and shareholders face billions of euros of losses on investments, underscoring the global reach of the alleged Ponzi scheme run by the veteran New York money manager.
A ponzi scheme is a type of securities fraud where the promoter makes some sort of false or misleading statement about an investment (often including a guaranteed high rate of return) and pays off older investors with newer investors money.
Santander, the eurozone's largest bank by market value, said its clients had an exposure of 2.33 billion euros ($3.1 billion) to Madoff's investment funds, mainly through its Optimal Strategic US Equity fund.
The company, which has been relatively unscathed from global financial crisis, said it had hired Madoff's firm to execute the Optimal fund's investments. Santander vowed to "undertake the legal actions which may be needed to defend the interests of investors."
The Journal reported that BNP, France's largest bank by market value, said it could lose as much as 350 million euros as a result of the alleged fraud.
However, the bank said it has no investment of its own in the hedge funds managed by Bernard Madoff Investment Services. BNP Paribas, however, said it is exposed to these funds through its trading business and lending to hedge funds that had invested in Madoff's funds.
The losses, the Journal said, could prove particularly embarrassing for banks' private-banking businesses, which charge high fees to wealthy investors in return for what is supposed to be superior advice and due diligence.
More than two billion euros belongs to institutional investors and international clients of Santander's private-banking business, which provides services to wealthy individuals, it was quoted as saying. The remaining 320 million euros belongs to private-banking customers in Spain, where the bank is based.
Most of the European banks' exposures were on client investments they managed, rather than on the banks' own balance sheets, it said, adding that it's not yet clear how much, if anything, investors in Madoff's funds may be able to recover.
Exposures to Madoff's funds have also emerged among a growing number of smaller European private banks.
In a letter posted on its website, the Swiss private bank Reichmuth and Co said its clients had an exposure of some 385 million Swiss francs to Madoff funds.
The bank said Reichmuth Matterhorn, a fund that invests in other hedge funds, faced a potential loss of about 8.6 per cent on its exposure to Madoff. That amount represented about 3.5 per cent of the 11 billion Swiss francs Reichmuth & Co. has under management, the bank said, the Journal reported.
Source: Agencies
European banks, including Spain's Grupo Santander SA and France's BNP Paribas, were quoted by the Wall Street Journal as saying that their clients and shareholders face billions of euros of losses on investments, underscoring the global reach of the alleged Ponzi scheme run by the veteran New York money manager.
A ponzi scheme is a type of securities fraud where the promoter makes some sort of false or misleading statement about an investment (often including a guaranteed high rate of return) and pays off older investors with newer investors money.
Santander, the eurozone's largest bank by market value, said its clients had an exposure of 2.33 billion euros ($3.1 billion) to Madoff's investment funds, mainly through its Optimal Strategic US Equity fund.
The company, which has been relatively unscathed from global financial crisis, said it had hired Madoff's firm to execute the Optimal fund's investments. Santander vowed to "undertake the legal actions which may be needed to defend the interests of investors."
The Journal reported that BNP, France's largest bank by market value, said it could lose as much as 350 million euros as a result of the alleged fraud.
However, the bank said it has no investment of its own in the hedge funds managed by Bernard Madoff Investment Services. BNP Paribas, however, said it is exposed to these funds through its trading business and lending to hedge funds that had invested in Madoff's funds.
The losses, the Journal said, could prove particularly embarrassing for banks' private-banking businesses, which charge high fees to wealthy investors in return for what is supposed to be superior advice and due diligence.
More than two billion euros belongs to institutional investors and international clients of Santander's private-banking business, which provides services to wealthy individuals, it was quoted as saying. The remaining 320 million euros belongs to private-banking customers in Spain, where the bank is based.
Most of the European banks' exposures were on client investments they managed, rather than on the banks' own balance sheets, it said, adding that it's not yet clear how much, if anything, investors in Madoff's funds may be able to recover.
Exposures to Madoff's funds have also emerged among a growing number of smaller European private banks.
In a letter posted on its website, the Swiss private bank Reichmuth and Co said its clients had an exposure of some 385 million Swiss francs to Madoff funds.
The bank said Reichmuth Matterhorn, a fund that invests in other hedge funds, faced a potential loss of about 8.6 per cent on its exposure to Madoff. That amount represented about 3.5 per cent of the 11 billion Swiss francs Reichmuth & Co. has under management, the bank said, the Journal reported.
Source: Agencies
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Geneva banks lost more than $4 billion to Madoff, says a report
Geneva-based banks and investment funds have lost more than 5 billion Swiss francs ($4.22 billion) in the alleged $50 billion fraud by former Nasdaq chairman Bernard Madoff, Swiss newspaper Le Temps reported on Saturday.
Union Bancaire Privee (UBP), a leading bank for investment in funds of hedge funds, has lost about 1 billion Swiss francs, said Le Temps, which spoke to various unnamed banking sources for its article.
A spokesman for UBP said the bank had no comment with regards to the article. UBP had 127 billion Swiss francs of assets under management at the end of June.
Geneva-based private bank Benedict Hentsch said on Friday its exposure to Madoff products was 56 million francs, or 5 percent of its asset under management.
The bank merged three months ago with alternative investment specialist Fairfield Greenwich Group, which has invested $7.5 billion or half of its assets in one of the funds set up by Madoff.
Le Temps quoted one of Benedict Hentsch's partners as saying he and another partner were rushing to New York to break the agreement with Fairfield.
The EIM Group, active in hedge funds, has said it is affected by $230 million or about 2 percent of its $11.5 billion assets under management, the paper reported. No one was available to answer phone calls at the bank and there was no reply to a request for comment via email.
Le Temps also said that Notz, Stucki & Cie, a group that offers portfolio management for wealthy individuals, has also been hit by the Madoff scandal. No one was available to answer phone calls at the bank and a phone message was not returned.
The vast majority of Geneva-based family offices have also been touched by the Madoff scandal, the newspaper said. Benbassat & Cie had invested 1.1 billion francs in the Madoff funds, Le Temps said. Telephone calls to the bank were not answered an email message was not returned.
Private bank Syz & Co told Le Temps that its 3A fund was not exposed to Madoff. But it did not give details about a possible direct exposure of its private banking clients, the paper said.
Bank Pictet & Cie said it had "never chosen any of the funds linked to Bernard Madoff in our hedge funds investment strategy."
Thierry Lombard, of private bank Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch, was quoted as saying: "the Madoff universe has never been on our list of in-house funds nor in any of the open architecture funds."
Private bank Mirabaud said: "We have an exposure of a few millions, not of tens of millions."
Source: Agencies
Union Bancaire Privee (UBP), a leading bank for investment in funds of hedge funds, has lost about 1 billion Swiss francs, said Le Temps, which spoke to various unnamed banking sources for its article.
A spokesman for UBP said the bank had no comment with regards to the article. UBP had 127 billion Swiss francs of assets under management at the end of June.
Geneva-based private bank Benedict Hentsch said on Friday its exposure to Madoff products was 56 million francs, or 5 percent of its asset under management.
The bank merged three months ago with alternative investment specialist Fairfield Greenwich Group, which has invested $7.5 billion or half of its assets in one of the funds set up by Madoff.
Le Temps quoted one of Benedict Hentsch's partners as saying he and another partner were rushing to New York to break the agreement with Fairfield.
The EIM Group, active in hedge funds, has said it is affected by $230 million or about 2 percent of its $11.5 billion assets under management, the paper reported. No one was available to answer phone calls at the bank and there was no reply to a request for comment via email.
Le Temps also said that Notz, Stucki & Cie, a group that offers portfolio management for wealthy individuals, has also been hit by the Madoff scandal. No one was available to answer phone calls at the bank and a phone message was not returned.
The vast majority of Geneva-based family offices have also been touched by the Madoff scandal, the newspaper said. Benbassat & Cie had invested 1.1 billion francs in the Madoff funds, Le Temps said. Telephone calls to the bank were not answered an email message was not returned.
Private bank Syz & Co told Le Temps that its 3A fund was not exposed to Madoff. But it did not give details about a possible direct exposure of its private banking clients, the paper said.
Bank Pictet & Cie said it had "never chosen any of the funds linked to Bernard Madoff in our hedge funds investment strategy."
Thierry Lombard, of private bank Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch, was quoted as saying: "the Madoff universe has never been on our list of in-house funds nor in any of the open architecture funds."
Private bank Mirabaud said: "We have an exposure of a few millions, not of tens of millions."
Source: Agencies
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