The Madoff investigators have released and the Wall Street Journal has posted, Bernie’s List of victims. Check it out – it’s alphabetical so easy to use if you know who you’re looking for. A quick scanning this morning showed why Bernie needed Walt Noel and his Greenwich connections so badly – few names of direct victims are from here. I’m looking forward to the release of Noel’s List so we can see where Madoff’s second source of cash came from. Bythe way, I did check and, sure enough, Fairfield Greenwich Group is listed as a “victim”. How about Walter himself? I forgot to look. Off to see and I’ll be right back.
UPDATE: Oops! This is going to take more time than I have at 6 in the morning. The list is not in alphabetical order unless, like the government, you consider “Mr. John Smith” to belong just before Mr. Joshua Aaaronsen”. I’ll do some digging later. One name that did catch my eye was the Steven Jaffe Trust – a bunch of separate accounts belonging, I’d guess, to Bob Jaffe’s kid. Jaffe was Madoff’s main Palm Beach fund raiser so it does look like he drank the Kool Ade himself. Good for him. Later on Walter and the Fabulous Girls.
For What It's Worth 
Madoff didn’t “need” Noel. He WANTED “feeder funds” because they were just one account (representing hundreds or thousands of people) that Madoff would have to make fake statements for, rather than each of those people having to be done individually.
Instead of meeting and gladhanding hundreds of people, all Madoff had to do was keep Walter happy. Walter deals with the monthly/quarterly/annual reporting to his clients, Madoff only has to fake trade tickets and K-1s for one entity: Fairfield Greenwich.
Madoff discovered that feeder funds were a high-octane way to get many people in, with less hassle for him (in terms of operations/back office, which was the crux of the scheme).
got it?
I think he needed those feeder funds to keep the Ponzi going. Walter, with his European, South American and Greenwich contacts, probably enabled the scheme to go on longer than it otherwise would have. Just my guess, of course.
Of course Madoff needed the feeders. They provided over half of the putative value at the end. They were also very convient, as they only required one statement. But Madoff needed them desparately. Without them, the Ponzi would have blown up years ago.
What I find very troubling is that not only did all these people lose money with Madoff, they now face the indignity of having their names splashed across the internet for everyone to see. I do know people on this list and I know they are probably very angry their names are out there for everyone to see.
This just compounds the injustice. Why and how did the WSJ get this info? What is the legality of releasing it to the public?
I guess, like any court document, it’s a public record and fodder for the curious, like me. I did question the propiety of digging through the names but I figure 1000 reporters are sifting through the same list right now so it’s all coming out.
Yes, I have neighbors and friends on this list. I still continue to be astounded both by the magnitude of the crime – and that someone could be evil enough to do this to purported “friends.”
Scamsters would have to work much harder if there wasn’t so much dumb and/or greedy money in world….been that way for decades…unlikely to ever change
Bernie and his “investors” deserve each other…
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