NEW YORK (AP) — The trustee recovering assets for investors in jailed financier Bernard Madoff’s fraudulent business is suing seven international banks in an effort to recover more than $1 billion.
Irving Picard on Wednesday announced the complaints against Citibank, Natixis, Fortis, ABN AMRO, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Merrill Lynch, and Nomura.
The complaints accuse the banks of receiving transfers of money from Madoff’s business through numerous feeder funds when they either knew or should have known of Madoff’s fraud.
Picard said in a release that the banks enabled the Madoff Ponzi scheme by creating and offering derivative investment products linked to various Madoff feeder funds.
The 72-year-old Madoff is serving a 150-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to fraud charges.
