FXCM bailout leads to huge windfall

Currency investors around the world were wiped out in January when the Swiss franc soared, but one investor has made a fortune from the aftermath.

Leucadia National Corp has tripled its money on the bailout of retail currency brokerage FXCM, according to an SEC filing on Friday. Leucadia came to the brokerage's rescue following massive customer losses on the Swiss National Bank's surprise decision to abandon a peg to the euro.

Leucadia is now carrying the value of its FXCM stake on its book at $947 million, its quarterly report showed. The January rescue of the currency firm was valued at $300 million.

FXCM shares lost most of their value following the Leucadia rescue, though they are now about 20 percent above their lows.

In addition to the two-year loan, Leucadia will get a portion of the proceeds if FXCM or some of its assets are sold. It can also force a sale of FXCM starting in 2018.