The hunt for MF Global's missing $600-million in customer money could begin at the doors of Chicago-based Harris Bank.SHANNON STAPLETON/REUTERS
Foreign-exchange clients of MF Global Canada Co. will get all their money by Dec. 2 after having been excluded from an earlier agreement, said the trustee for the bankrupt brokerage.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has authorized cash payment to MF Global's 2,500 foreign-exchange clients, KPMG Inc., the court-appointed trustee, said Friday. KPMG had said a week ago that it aimed to make the payment by Nov. 30.
"They'll be paid within a week," Richard Harris, the KPMG partner overseeing the transaction, said in an interview. The foreign-exchange clients are "getting a hundred cents on the dollar, which relative to what's happening with MF Global around the world is a pretty positive story."
A previous agreement to repay MF Global's futures, bond and equity clients by next week excluded holders of forex accounts, leaving some confused about the status of their funds almost three weeks after the Oct. 31 bankruptcy of the brokerage's U.S. parent, MF Global Holdings Ltd.
The Canadian Investor Protection Fund was helpful in getting full repayment to the forex clients, Mr. Harris said. KPMG is working with RBC Dominion Securities on the transfer to clients of the futures, bond and stock accounts. Both groups will be getting paid within a week, he said. At stake are about $400-million in investments.