10K More Madoff Investors Could Get Cash

Bernie Madoff's victim pool has been expanded to include so-called "third party" investors, or people who lost money they had invested with "middleman" firms that in turn invested it with Madoff. That means more than 10,000 people—initially denied from receiving compensation distributed by the liquidation trustee because they were not officially Madoff clients—can submit claims to be compensated from a separate fund, CNNMoney reports.

This group represents the largest category of Madoff victims, making up about 70% of all the claims filed after his arrest, the New York Times reports. An administrator appointed by the Department of Justice will distribute $2.35 billion, some of which was obtained via seizure of such Madoff assets as his Manhattan penthouse, three vacation homes, and his yacht and other pricey boats. The other fund, meanwhile, consists primarily of money from settlements with Madoff investors who actually made money while he was running the Ponzi scheme. (More Bernie Madoff stories.)