Refco sells some assets to Man Group

Refco, the commodities and futures broker, said it has sold its US regulated commodity futures business to a unit of Man Group, the world’s largest publicly traded hedge fund company.

The sale to Man came after US bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain authorized Refco to liquidate some assets. Earlier on Friday, the company’s Refco LLC unit filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection to facilitate the sale to Man, according to the unit’s bankruptcy petition.

“Good and sufficient reasons for approval of the agreement and the sale have been articulated,” Drain wrote in his order. The sale is “in the best interest of the Chapter 7 debtor’s estate and its creditors and customers,” he added. Refco Inc filed for bankruptcy protection on October 17, one week after ousting its CEO Phillip Bennett, and accusing him of hiding $430 mn of debt. — Reuters