NEW YORK — Thousands of investors will not be reimbursed for money lost in Bernie Madoff’s decades-long ponzi scheme due to a federal court ruling today, according to the Washington Post.
US District Court Judge Denise Cote decided investors in feeder or hedge funds are not eligible for repayment because they did not have accounts with the firm in their own name. The federal fund set up to aid victims of the pyramid scheme is strictly for small investors, who can receive up to $500,000 each for their losses.
Cote affirmed a previous ruling by Bankruptcy Court Judge Irving Picard, who is responsible for allocating funds lost in the scheme. So far he has approved 2,425 claims, a total of $7.3 billion.
Hundreds of claims are still pending, and the total damage is estimated at around $20 billion, according to CNN. Madoff is currently serving a 150-year sentence in Federal prison for his crimes.
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