Puerto Rico and Bondholders Agree on Electric Company Debt Deal (tags)
Puerto Rico’s electric utility company (PREPA) and bondholders reached an agreement to restructure $8.9 billion in debt, according to an announcement from the island's government.
Argentina Faces US Contempt Hearing (tags)
US Federal Judge Thomas Griesa scheduled Argentina to appear for a contempt hearing on Monday, September 29. At issue is Argentina's failure to follow a court order to only continue to pay the 92% of bondholders who restructured after the country's 2001 default if Argentina pays a group of hold-out hedge funds. Argentina organized payment to restructured bondholders via an Argentine bank to avoid paying the hedge funds. The hedge funds, popularly known as "vulture funds," are asking the judge to hold Argentina in contempt and fine the South American country $50,000 per day.
Predatory Hedge Funds and Argentina Face Supreme Court Showdown in Landmark Global Poverty (tags)
Argentina is expected to appeal to the US Supreme Court by mid-February in response to a US 2nd Circuit Court ruling ordering the country to pay $1.33 billion to predatory hedge funds. The precedent the case sets will hurt poor countries in financial distress and could allow a small group of hedge funds to target assets that benefit vulnerable populations. At the same time, debt holders who restructured their debt with Argentina have hired lawyers to help negotiate the dispute between holdout hedge funds and Argentina. Nearly 93% of debt holders restructured their debt with Argentina after the 2001 default. The majority of bondholders are concerned that their settlements could be disrupted if hedge funds win the final ruling.
U.S. Supreme Court Will Not Take Argentina and NML Capital Debt Case (tags)
The U.S. Supreme Court decided not to take the landmark debt case between Argentina and bondholders led by NML Capital, a hedge fund that buys the debt of countries in financial crisis. Argentina is expected to file a second petition in the coming months that the Supreme Court will review and decide again if it will hear the case.
Detroit’s Retired City Workers in the Crosshairs (tags)
With Detroit’s finances looking increasingly dire, the city’s creditors are beginning to face off with one another, each trying to minimize their losses. The city’s pension fund, which supports retired city workers, has found itself in direct conflict with a formidable opponent, the bondholders, individuals and institutions that gave the city money in order to enjoy the interest on the loan.
Jackson Challenger Hayes Rejects Public Option (tags)
Chicago, IL–(ENEWSPF)– Isaac C. Hayes, the GOP nominee for Congress in Illinois' Second Congressional District, released a statement Tuesday condemning health care reform that includes a public option. Hayes called the proposed "public option" in health care reform legislation moving through the Congress is a "Nightmare on Elm Street." which will lead to soaring deficits, and declining medical care for Americans. The program will also scare the daylights out of bondholders of the U.S. and that's deadly for America's economic future.