US Federal Judge Thomas said on Friday it gave him the greatest pleasure to be able to exercise his discretion and lift the injunction against Argentina which impeded the payment on defaulted debt.
Once Argentina pays the holdout funds, US District Judge Thomas Griesa will lift the injunctions against the country, court-appointed mediator Daniel Pollack said, following the appeals court ruling that cleared the way for Argentina to pay its debts.
The United States Court of Appeals paved the way on Wednesday for Argentina to raise billions of dollars to pay a group of hedge funds, bringing it one step closer to re-entering international markets for the first time in 15 years. In a ruling from the bench, three judges on the court of appeals upheld a ruling by Judge Thomas Griesa of District Court in Manhattan to lift an injunction that had barred Argentina from paying its creditors and eventually led the country to default in 2014.
The Argentine government made official the accord reached with the holdout funds sponsored by a New York federal court, to pay for defaulted bonds in a fifteen year litigation, following the approval of the bill by the Senate. This means Argentina can now look for funds in the international monetary market.
By Martin Guzman and Joseph E. Stiglitz (*) - Perhaps the most complex trial in history between a sovereign nation, Argentina, and its bondholders — including a group of United States-based hedge funds — officially came to an end yesterday (March 31) when the Argentine Senate ratified a settlement.
After 13 hours of debate, Argentina's senate voted overwhelmingly to approve a deal with creditors in the US, putting an end to a sovereign bonds' dispute that had lasted 15 years. The deal was reached in late February, and the Lower House passed it earlier this month. The senate began debating on Wednesday morning and on early Thursday passed the measure by 54 votes to 16.
As the Argentine congress started to debate an end to the 15-year litigation, United States District Judge Thomas Griesa sent a new message of support to Argentina by claiming he won’t allow any attempts to seize the funds to be used by Argentina to pay the holdout creditors.
The administration of president Mauricio Macri overcame a first hurdle in the Argentine congress to have its debt normalization bill approved, which should help bring to an end years of litigation with the holdout funds and open access to global money markets in normal conditions.
After rough discussions, Argentina's Lower House committees on Tuesday managed to clear the holdouts bill for debate with changes proposed by the allied Renewal Front and criticism from Victory Front lawmakers.The bill will reach the floor next week. If it passes, it will then be up for debate in the Senate, where the situation is similar, with the ruling Let’s Change needing help from opposition lawmakers to ensure the bill passes.
Elliott Management Corp., a New York-based hedge fund that invested in distressed Argentine government bonds well over a decade ago, will have made a $2.4 billion profit on its wager once this week's settlement is finalized, the Wall Street Journal said.