Although $10 million is a lot of money, it’s not much compared with $50 billion in lost investments. The $10 million figure represents the upper limit of the current value of Bernard Madoff’s businesses, which Madoff had valued at $826 million before his proverbial fall. It doesn’t look good for his defrauded investors’ chances of reclaiming much of their missing funds.

Bloomberg:

The Madoffs valued their net worth Dec. 31 at $826 million, including $700 million for Madoff’s ownership in Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, according to a March 13 court filing. The firm’s brokerage has since been valued at no more than $10 million, according to Larry Tabb, founder of TABB Group, a financial-market research and advisory firm. The firm’s money management unit is likely to be unsaleable, analysts said.

“The $700 million number is probably a figment of Madoff’s imagination,” said Stephen Harbeck, president of the Securities Investors Protection Corp., which is overseeing the liquidation of Madoff’s New York-based brokerage. “He put that value on the business while he was still conducting the fraud.”

Read more

Wait, before you go…

If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.

Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.

Support Truthdig