Sitso Bediako is a Senior Associate at Lowey Dannenberg, P.C. and a member of the Firm’s Commodities and Derivatives Practice Group.
Mr. Bediako has helped recover more than $1 billion in settlements of behalf of classes of individual investors, pension funds, state governments and institutional investors impacted by alleged manipulation of financial markets. In addition to investigating and prosecuting claims against defendants, Mr. Bediako has negotiated class action settlements and guided these settlements through the approval process, including managing the work of settlement administrators and escrow agents, supervising the notification of potential class members, and directing the implementation of the court-approved plans to distribute funds to class members.
Over the course of his career, Mr. Bediako has represented clients as plaintiffs and defendants in a broad array of complex litigation matters, including federal securities and antitrust class actions, shareholder and director disputes, sensitive internal investigations, regulator inquiries, and whistleblower complaints. Mr. Bediako has appeared in both federal and state courts, and he has achieved favorable outcomes for a range of clients including charitable organizations, small business owners, and large corporations. Mr. Bediako has significant experience managing the e-discovery process in complex litigation matters and working on matters involving expert witnesses.
Notable Cases:
Sullivan v. Barclays PLC et al., No. 13-cv-2811 (S.D.N.Y.) involves the alleged manipulation of the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (“Euribor”) by financial institutions that traded in Euribor-based financial products. Over $490 million in settlements have been achieved, and an appeal of certain dismissed defendants is pending.
Laydon v. Mizuho Bank, Ltd. et al., No. 12-cv-03419 (S.D.N.Y.) and Sonterra Capital Master Fund, Ltd. v. UBS AG et al., No. 15-cv-5844 (S.D.N.Y.) allege that a number of the world’s largest financial institutions manipulated the London Interbank Offered Rate for the Japanese Yen (“Yen-LIBOR”) and the Tokyo Interbank Offered Rate for the Japanese Yen in the Japan offshore market (“Euroyen TIBOR”) to benefit the financial institutions’ positions in various Yen-LIBOR and Euroyen TIBOR-based instuments. To date over $300 million in settlements have been approved against over a dozen defendants. Litigation against the remaining defendants is ongoing.
In re GSE Bonds Antitrust Litig., No. 19-1704 (S.D.N.Y.) focuses on the alleged manipulation by certain secondary market dealers of unsecured bonds issued by government-sponsored enterprises (“GSEs”) including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Court has preliminarily approved over $380 million in settlements, with final approval of the settlements expected shortly.
Dennis et al. v. JPMorgan Chase & Co. et al., No. 16-cv-6496 (S.D.N.Y.) is a suit involving allegations that the Australian Bank Bill Swap Rate (“BBSW”) was manipulated by certain financial institutions that purchased and sold BBSW-based instruments.
In re Mexican Government Bonds Antitrust Litig., No. 18-cv-2830 (S.D.N.Y.) alleges certain financial institutions manipulated the market for and prices of peso-denominated Mexican government bonds.
Admissions and Community Involvement
Mr. Bediako is admitted to the New York and Minnesota state bars, and is a member of the bars of the United States District Courts for the Southern District of New York, Eastern District of New York, and the District of Minnesota, and the United States Tax Court. As a law student, he was a judicial extern to the Honorable Michael J. Davis, United States District Court for the District of Minnesota.
Mr. Bediako has served as co-president of his local elementary school PTA and volunteers as a coach for a community-based recreational soccer league. He also recently completed two terms of volunteer service on the University of Minnesota Law School’s Board of Advisors. In 2014, Mr. Bediako was a recipient of The Legal Aid Society’s Award for Outstanding Pro Bono Service.
