Last year, a case in Illinois was filed against George Daskaleas, known as the Greek Madoff for orchestrating a massive, $500 million Ponzi Scheme . The court also admitted charges against Ikon Global Markets and the company’s managing director Diwakar Jagganath.
According to court documents, the charges against the company and its manager have been dismissed. The Circuit Court of Cook County in Illinois states that Ikon Global Markets (Ikon GM) and Diwakar Jagannath who worked from the company’s satellite office on the Chicago Board of Trade are vacated from the case due to lack of personal jurisdiction.
Claims Fully Dismissed
The claims of the plaintiffs that filed for instant action have been fully dismissed. According to the judgement pertaining to Ikon GM and Mr. Jagganath, there is no evidence to link the actions of George Daskaleas with the firm and its management. The plaintiffs’ claims against George Daskaleas have also been dismissed, as he is a resident of Greece.
The charges brought to the court were seeking damages to the tune of $23 million. At the time of the filing, a similar effort was shot down in a UK court. The decision in the US further dismisses any connections between Ikon and George Daskaleas.
Commenting to Finance Magnates, the chairman of the company, Engin Yikilmazoglu, said: “I am absolutely delighted that the court in Chicago has dismissed the action and vacated the judgment that had been originally obtained by the plaintiffs without Ikon GM’s appearance in court.”
“The company considered that all of the allegations the subject of that action were baseless and were fully refuted by Ikon GM. Indeed, the action was about defaming or disparaging our good name. As was expected, the dismissal has confirmed our challenge to the action. We will continue to seek justice for our losses caused by this action and otherwise,” Mr. Yikilmazoglu elaborated.
Ikon GM actively protested the decision made by the US court in August 2017 with the firm committing to take proactive steps to protect its interests.
Daskaleas is Under Custody in Greece
Greek authorities stumbled upon the scheme at the end of 2015. Daskalaes orchestrated a pyramid scheme that was run as a hedge fund by for years. The fund was established in 2013. At the time, the operations of the intermediary Ikon Global Markets had already been shut down in the aftermath of the Dodd-Frank regulations.
Daskaleas claimed to his clients that he had expansive knowledge in trading. The initial capital of the hedge fund is stated to have reached $254 million. Promising “guaranteed returns of up to 60%”, he managed to accumulate over $500 million at one point.
In May 2015 it was discovered that while the hedge fund’s value exceeded $500 million, the bank account balances held by the management company were at zero. The headquarters of Mr. Daskaleas’s investment fund was in Belize. According to Greek media reports at the time, he solicited funds from Greek, European and Ukrainian individuals and businesses.
The Greek Securities and Exchange Commission inspected and fined Mr. Daskalas in 2010 for providing investment services illegally. According to the regulator he was providing investment services to a large number of clients in Greece without having the appropriate license.
