Update Madoff Mess (January 8th 2009)

Update Madoff Mess (January 8th 2009)

As it turns out Bernie Madoff is also responsible for a couple of hundred million in Labor Union Pension Funds losses (Carpenters Union).
Another development, investigators found 100 signed checks worth $173 million in Bernard Madoff's office desk that he was ready to send out to his closest family and friends at the time of his arrest last month.
He also was accused of sending more than $1 million worth of jewelry to friends and family over the holidays, prompting prosecutors to ask a judge to revoke his bail.

'Casualties of War:' Lousy Returns, Madoff Scandal Spell Doom for Hedge Funds
After the average hedge fund lost 23% last year, according to Reuters, investor confidence was further shaken by the Bernie Madoff scandal, which will only increase the regulatory scrutiny on the industry.

Madoff bail to be decided on Monday January 12th
CNN Money and Fortune wrap up the complete Madoff Mess in a special report.
http://money.cnn.com/news/specials/madoff/

Boston hedge fund shuttering after Madoff bet
Fri Jan 9, 2009 3:26pm EST

BOSTON (Reuters) - Hedge-fund firm GMB Capital Management is shutting down a fund that lost more than $50 million on bad bets that included putting money with accused swindler Bernard Madoff, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The Boston-based GMB Low Volatility Fund LP, which had more than $100 million in assets, began liquidating late last year, the sources said.
GMB Capital is run by Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Gabriel Bitran and his son Marco.
Low Volatility Fund once wooed investors with the promise that it would rely heavily on Bitran's complicated algorithms to deliver low volatility where prices almost never change. Instead, the father and son team appears to have done exactly the opposite, funneling a big chunk of money to Madoff, a financier accused last month of running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, the sources said. Read more...