Investors in Therma International, an offshore hedge fund based in Ireland, have filed a lawsuit in New York against HSBC, Ernst and Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers in an attempt to recoup money lost to Madoff.
According to regional reports Fabian Perrone, an Argentine hedge fund investor, and Chia Hung Kao, from Taiwan, are likely to be the lead plaintiffs in the effort to reclaim USD3 billion lost to the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme.
HSBC acted as custodian and administrator to two of the funds under the Therma name. According to Brian Murray, a lawyer with Murray Frank and Sailer in New York, HSBC was responsible for determining the NAV of the funds.
The contention is they should have done better due diligence, Murray said.
Auditing roles and advice regarding investment prospectuses have implicated Ernst and Young and PwC. None of the defendants were available for comment.