JP Morgan has reached a $75m (£61.6m) settlement with the US Virgin Islands to end a long-running legal battle over its dealings with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The giant American bank also said it had struck a deal to end its claims against Jes Staley, the former Barclays chief executive who had handled Epstein as its client while working as a wealth manager at JP Morgan.
JP Morgan said the terms of the settlement with Mr Staley were confidential, while a lawyer for the banker declined to comment.
The agreements come in addition to a previous $290m settlement between JP Morgan and Epstein’s victims. It preempted a trial that had been scheduled to begin in October.
The settlements bring to an end the long running legal battle over the bank’s handling of Epstein as a client, which had resulted in a series of embarrassing disclosures about the inner workings of JP Morgan and its relationship with the disgraced billionaire.
Court documents had alleged Mr Staley drank wine in a hot tub on Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean while the sex-offending financier was under house arrest for his crimes.
According to filings, Mr Staley emailed Epstein to praise his hospitality: “This is an amazing place. Next time, we’re here together. I owe you much. And I deeply appreciate our friendship. I have few so profound.”
The messages, presented as evidence, also showed the pair discussing “Disney princesses”.
The US Virgin Islands had alleged JP Morgan ignored “red flags” about Epstein and “knowingly benefited from furthering Epstein’s sex-trafficking venture” between 2006 and his arrest in 2019.
It quoted an email from Mary Erdoes, a senior executive at the bank, describing Epstein’s “nymphettes”. In emails, William Langford, its global head of compliance, said he believed JPMorgan “should exit Jeffrey Epstein as a client”. The bank closed Epstein’s accounts in 2013.
The repercussions from the case ran to the top of JP Morgan. Its long-serving chief executive and chairman, Jamie Dimon, spent a day in deposition as part of the case. He made “crystal clear” he knew nothing about Epstein’s sex crimes when the bank handled his finances.
The settlement gives $30m to support charities in the US Virgin Islands that fight human trafficking and sex crimes, and support victims.
Another $25m will go to the USVI “to enhance the infrastructure and capabilities of law enforcement to prevent and combat human trafficking and other crimes in their territories”.
JP Morgan said it “believes this settlement is in the best interest of all parties, particularly for those who can benefit from efforts to combat human trafficking, and for survivors who suffer unimaginable abuse at the hands of these criminals”.
Epstein was convicted of child sex offences in 2008 and was arrested on federal charges of sex trafficking minors in 2019. He died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019.
JP Morgan said in a statement: “While the settlement does not involve admissions of liability, the firm deeply regrets any association with this man, and would never have continued doing business with him if it believed he was using the bank in any way to commit his heinous crimes.
“The firm will continue to work with law enforcement to combat human trafficking and help to identify improper money movement into the global payments systems.”
After leaving JP Morgan, Mr Staley went on to become chief executive of Barclays in 2015. He was forced to resign in 2021 amid an investigation into his links to Epstein.
Lawyers for Mr Staley declined to comment.
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