Jefferies Demands Weiss Claw Back $30 Million in Bonus Payouts

Weiss Multi-Strategy Advisers should claw back about $30 million that it paid employees just before filing for bankruptcy, the hedge fund’s main creditor, Jefferies Financial Group, said in court Tuesday.

At Weiss’ first bankruptcy hearing, Jefferies claimed the hedge fund wrongly paid out bonuses when Weiss was already insolvent, and that cash should have been used to pay down debt owed to the bank. A Weiss lawyer said the bonuses were standard compensation for its employees and necessary because at the time the firm was trying to secure a rescue deal with Millennium Management. That deal ultimately fell through ...