New York Judge Thomas Griesa will be meeting at 3 pm today parties involved in a billionaire bond fight that has raised default fears in Latin America’s N° 3 economy over the past days, sources at the US District Court told the Buenosairesherald.com.
The hearing comes as the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York lifted also today the stay of enforcement of injunctions issued by Griesa.
The judged is expected to confirm whether he extends the hold on a judge’s order requiring Argentina to pay $1.33 billion to bondholders who did not participate in two debt restructurings.
During this afternoon’s meeting, the US judge is also expected to officially inform both parties on the decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that on Monday rejected to hear Argentina’s appeal against the holdout creditors that refused to enter the 2005 and 2010 debt swaps. He might as well settle the negotiation steps to follow.
Lawyers of the NML Capital Ltd. Hedge fund commanded by US billionaire Paul Singer and legal representatives of Argentina – the Cleary Gotlieb Steen & Hamilton (CGS&H) buffet -, will meet this afternoon with Jugde Griesa at 3 pm.
Earlier today, Griesa met with lawyers Carmine Bocuzzi and Jonathan Blackman of CSG&H.
Argentina’s legal strategy is to convince the judge to set a new negotiation option that could allow Argentina to win some extra time at least till December and to consider the possibility of authorizing a debt swap to be serviced in Buenos Aires and not in New York.
In October last year, Griesa already rejected that same option.
In order to make it all the way to January next year without the obligation to pay holdout creditors, a settlement must be first reached between both parties with hedge funds’ lawyers agreeing on the new payment term. In 2015, Argentina would then offer them a deal that improves payment conditions of the 2010 debt swap.
It is that scenario both parties will discuss and that judge will inform on today.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald