ARGENTINA said Tuesday it will formally demand that intermediary banks charged with delivering the country’s debt payments make hundreds of millions of dollars in payouts that were due in June but that have been blocked by a U.S. court.

    Argentina defaulted last week after losing a long legal battle with hedge funds that rejected the terms of debt restructurings in 2005 and 2010.

    The government deposited payments owed to holders of its restructured bonds with intermediaries Citibank Argentina and Bank of New York Mellon.

    U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa said the deposits were illegal because he had ordered Argentina not to pay restructured bondholders without paying the holdouts at the same time.

    The economy ministry late Tuesday issued a statement saying it will formally demand that Bank of New York Mellon and Citibank Argentina make the payouts despite Griesa’s order.(SD-Agencies)