Ruling leaves massive debt for next Argentina government

A new ruling by a US judge has increased the total Argentina owes holdout bondholders to $5.2 billion -- a massive responsibility that if upheld likely will fall to the next government, experts said.

In a 26-page ruling, US District Court Judge Thomas Griesa concluded Friday that by refusing to make payment to some hedge fund and individual bondholders of its defaulted debt, while making payment to other creditors, Buenos Aires was in violation of an equal treatment provision in its contracts.

Griesa in a 2012 ruling sided with a group of hedge funds, led by NML and Aurelius Capital Management, who for years have been trying to force Argentina to pay off $1.3 billion in defaulted bonds they hold.

The judge said that his 2012 ruling should also apply to more than 500 "me-too" bondholders who were not covered under the original decision.

http://news.yahoo.com/ruling-leaves-massive-debt-next-argentina-government-233025455.html