Ritchie hedge funds' assets sell at auction for $452.5 million

By Rebecca Melvin

New York, Jan. 15 - The assets of Ritchie Risk-Linked Strategies Trading (Ireland), Ltd. and Ritchie Risk-Linked Strategies Trading (Ireland) II Ltd. were successfully auctioned to two different bidders for a combined total of $452.5 million, according to an attorney.

The assets of Ritchie I are being sold to ABN Amro for $396 million, and the assets of Ritchie II are being sold to Nutmeg Life Settlement Trust for $56.5 million, plus policy payments, less the matured policy price, sources said.

All together there were six qualified bidders at the Jan. 9 auction, held at the New York offices of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, the Ritchie funds' attorney.

The assets sold included the funds' pool of life insurance policies, the right to collect benefit proceeds from the related issuing insurance companies, the right to proceeds of policy loans or withdrawals post-purchase and the right to proceed against any state guarantee fund and other property and interests in property.

A hearing to approve the sale of substantially all the Ritchie assets is scheduled Wednesday at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

Ritchie Capital Management's two Ireland-based hedge funds filed for bankruptcy June 20, 2007. Their Chapter 11 case number is 07-11906.

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