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Friday, March 5, 2010

LuxAlpha Madoff victims barred from suing UBS

Victims of Ponzi fraudster Bernard Madoff who invested in the LuxAlpha fund have been told they can not sue UBS, the bank which helped set up the investment vehicle, a court in Luxembourg has ruled.

The ruling was made in a test case involving ten claimants following the filing of more than 100 lawsuits against UBS alleging that it neglected its duties in the management of the fund.

It was ruled that victims must instead seek claims via the liquidators of the fund.

Tatiana Togni, a spokeswoman for the Swiss bank, said: "UBS welcomes the clarification of Luxembourg law as expressed by today's decisions of the Luxembourg Commercial Court."

Last month, UBS reported profits levels of $1.1 billion for the final three months of 2009.

Chief executive officer Oswald Gruebel has set the bank an annual target of pre-tax profits of $15 billion – a figure he wishes UBS to achieve by 2014.

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