A group of hedge funds are seeking a 226 million euro interest payment on Argentine bonds from Bank of New York Mellon that was blocked by a U.S. judge last month, The New York Times reported yesterday. In a lawsuit filed in London against Bank of New York, the hedge funds contend that the bank’s London unit must release money that was deposited by Argentina for its euro-denominated bondholders. The money was part of a $539 million interest payment that Hon. Thomas P. Griesa of the Federal District Court in Manhattan prevented the trustee from paying last month. The latest lawsuit poses a challenge to the scope of the ruling and will further complicate what has been a long and drawn out battle between the government of Argentina and a group of New York hedge funds. In a hearing on Friday, Judge Griesa ruled the move “illegal” but stopped short of holding Argentina in contempt of court.
