The estate of one of the largest beneficiaries of Bernard Madoff’s multibillion dollar Ponzi scheme, Jeffrey Picower, has agreed to return $7 billion to Madoff’s victims.

The figure is the difference between the amount of cash that Picower, a Jewish investor, put into his account with Madoff and the amount that he withdrew, The New York Times reported. The deal was set to be announced at a news conference on Friday.

Picower, whose foundation gave to Jewish causes before it was wiped out by the revelation of Madoff’s fraud, was found dead of a heart attack in his swimming pool in October of 2009.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Irving Picard, the trustee for Madoff’s estate who is charged with recouping funds from those who made money on the scam, returning it to those who lost money with Madoff, has estimated that the total cash losses in the scam are about $20 billion. He has filed hundreds of so-called clawback lawsuits against those who made money and has reached significant settlements with others, including a $45 million settlement with Hadassah: The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, and a $625 million settlement with Boston-area Jewish philanthropist Carl Shapiro.

Including the reported Picower settlement, Picard will have recovered about half of what he estimates was stolen by Madoff.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re in the middle of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount