NEW YORK, NEW YORK and WASHINGTON, DC - December 11, 2025 - Irving H. Picard, Securities Investor Protection Act (SIPA) Trustee for the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS), filed a motion today in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York seeking approval for an allocation of more than $123 million in recoveries to the BLMIS Customer Fund and an authorization for a seventeenth pro rata interim distribution of more than $87 million from the Customer Fund to BLMIS customers with allowed claims. A hearing on the motion has been scheduled for January 28, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. EST.
“With our next anticipated distribution, 1,531 accounts will be made whole,” said David J. Sheehan, Chief Counsel to the SIPA Trustee. “As our global efforts continue, we look forward to future significant recoveries and distributions.”
“Our next expected distribution is another milestone in the global Madoff Recovery Initiative,” said Mr. Picard. “Despite the odds, our legal team, led by David Sheehan, and backed by SIPC, continues to achieve meaningful results on behalf of BLMIS customers with allowed claims.”
Seventeenth Distribution Will Bring Total Amount Restored to Nearly $14.67 Billion
When combined with the prior sixteen distributions, the seventeenth distribution will equal 72.015% percent of each customer’s allowed claim amount, unless that claim has been fully satisfied. The aggregate amount distributed to eligible BLMIS customers will total approximately $14.67 billion, including approximately $850.4 million in advances committed by SIPC.
As of October 31, 2025, the SIPA Trustee has recovered or reached agreements to recover approximately $14.833 billion.
The proposed distribution will be paid on claims relating to 767 BLMIS accounts and represents approximately 0.469% of their net equity claims, with an average payment amount of $114,553.90. When combined with the previous sixteen distributions and $850.4 million in advances committed by SIPC, 1,531 accounts with an allowed claim amount of up to $1.780 million will be fully satisfied following the seventeenth interim distribution.
Additional funds recovered between October 31, 2025 and January 31, 2026 will be distributed to BLMIS customers with allowed claims as set forth in the motion.
No funds recovered in the Madoff Recovery Initiative are used to pay costs associated with the recovery. All trustee, legal, and accounting fees, as well as administrative expenses, are paid by SIPC.
The Seventeenth Customer Fund Allocation and Distribution Motion can be found on the United States Bankruptcy Court’s website at https://www.nysb.uscourts.gov/; Bankr. S.D.N.Y., No. 08-01789 (LGB). It can also be found on the SIPA Trustee’s website along with more information on the BLMIS liquidation at: www.madofftrustee.com.
Messrs. Picard and Sheehan would like to thank Seanna Brown and Heather Wlodek of BakerHostetler, who worked on the seventeenth pro rata interim distribution and its related filings, as well as BakerHostetler, Windels Marx and all of the attorneys and professionals whose work has led to the distribution. They would also like to thank Vineet Sehgal and his colleagues at AlixPartners, as well as the personnel at SIPC, for their ongoing work and participation in the Madoff Recovery Initiative distributions.