A HIGH Court judge has made rulings aimed at a cost-effective and speedy resolution of a raft of legal actions brought here after more than one billion dollars of investor monies entrusted to the Irish arm of European banking giant HSBC ended up with now jailed US billion-dollar fraudster Bernard Madoff and his companies.

Crooked financier Bernard Madoff's accountant was arrested on fraud charges today accused of aiding the man who cheated thousands of investors out of billions of dollars.

THE financial regulator said two funds based in the country have exposure to Bernard Madoff’s alleged investment scam.