Stanford depositors swarm banks

Jason Szep
Reuters
Wednesday, February 18, 2009

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua (Reuters) – Hundreds of people lined up to withdraw money from banks in Antigua and Caracas affiliated with Texas billionaire Allen Stanford, a day after the tycoon was charged with an $8 billion fraud.

The whereabouts of the brash, 58-year-old financier were unknown. CNBC television said he tried to hire a private jet to fly from Houston, the site of his U.S. headquarters, to Antigua, but the jet lessor refused to accept his credit card.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has accused Stanford of operating a fraud centered on the sale of certificates of deposit from his Antiguan affiliate, Stanford International Bank Ltd (SIB).

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The scheme has drawn comparisons with the alleged $50 billion fraud by Wall Street veteran Bernard Madoff.

• A d v e r t i s e m e n t

In the twin-island state of Antigua and Barbuda, where Stanford is the biggest private employer, Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer said the charges against him could have “catastrophic” consequences but urged the public not to panic.

Full story here.

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