Bernard (Bernie) Madoff. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – A majority of victims of the massive Ponzi scheme perpetrated by American Jewish investment advisor Bernie Madoff are in line to recover more than half of their losses.

According to a motion filed Tuesday in New York City bankruptcy court, Madoff victims who invested up to $1,161,000 can now recover at least 61 percent of their investments if their claims are approved. Stephen Harbeck, president and CEO of the Securities Investors Protection Corporation, told ABC News that the ruling affects a majority of those who had valid claims of being a Madoff victim.

“Coming out of a Ponzi scheme with 61 percent of what you started out with is a major victory,” said Harbeck.

Jewish communal institutions, such as Hadassah and Yeshiva University, were hit particularly hard by Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.