Why Trump is targeting JPMorgan in Epstein probe
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President Trump on Friday said he will direct the Justice Department to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's connections to former President Bill Clinton, JPMorgan Chase and others. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
President Trump on Friday directed the Justice Department to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's connections to a number of high-profile people but also set the largest bank in the U.S. in his crosshairs: JPMorgan Chase.
Why it matters: Trump's cited several names — including former President Clinton — that have come under scrutiny for their association with the convicted sex offender, on the heels of House Democrats releasing emails detailing the president's own links to Epstein.
- In 2023, JPMorgan settled a case with the U.S. Virgin Islands over allegations the bank assisted and benefited from Epstein's sex trafficking.
- The bank also settled a case with one of its former executives and a class-action suit brought by survivors of Epstein's trafficking that year.
Driving the news: Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate the bank via Truth Social on Friday.
- "Now that the Democrats are using the Epstein Hoax, involving Democrats, not Republicans, to try and deflect from their disastrous SHUTDOWN, and all of their other failures, I will be asking A.G. Pam Bondi, and the Department of Justice, together with our great patriots at the FBI, to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's involvement and relationship with Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, Reid Hoffman, J.P. Morgan, Chase, and many other people and institutions, to determine what was going on with them, and him," he said.
The other side: "The government had damning information about his crimes and failed to share it with us or other banks," Trish Wexler, a spokesperson for JPMorgan, told Axios.
- "We regret any association we had with the man, but did not help him commit his heinous acts," Wexler said, adding that "We ended our relationship with him years before his arrest on sex trafficking charges."
Here's what to know about JPMorgan's lawsuits related to Epstein:
Epstein's relationship with JPMorgan
Zoom out: Epstein was valuable to JPMorgan.
- He brought the bank more than $8 million per year in revenues.
Epstein was a premier conduit for the bank, helping it make connections with big names, James Edward Staley, the former head of JPMorgan's head of wealth management, revealed in 2023 testimony.
- Staley said Epstein, a friend of his, had referred highly influential people such as Elon Musk and Bill Gates and the Sultan of Dubai as JPMorgan clients.
- A Gates spokesperson told Axios in 2023 he was not a client of JPMorgan. Sources previously told Axios that Musk, Gates and others "were not and are not" clients of the bank.
JPMorgan "bent over backwards to retain Epstein as a client," including accommodating large cash withdrawals even after he was indicted for child sex crimes. Axios' Felix Salmon wrote in 2023.
Virgin Islands, Staley settlements
Catch up quick: In 2022, the Virgin Islands alleged that JPMorgan facilitated Epstein's sex-trafficking venture not only by banking Epstein and allowing him to withdraw some $1.75 million in cash for payment to his victims, but also by banking the victims themselves.
JPMorgan agreed in 2023 to pay $75 million to the Virgin Islands.
- The bank did not admit to wrongdoing in the agreement.
By the numbers: The bank said in a press release at the time that it would pay about $30 million of the settlement to Virgin Islands charities.
- Another $25 million was allotted to the Virgin Islands to help local law enforcement fight human trafficking.
Zoom out: The Virgin Islands described the settlement as "the first enforcement action filed against a bank for facilitating and profiting from human trafficking."
At the time, JPMorgan also settled with Staley, who testified in the Virgin Islands case about Epstein's relationship with the bank.
- The bank had sued its ex-employee, claiming he was legally responsible for the lawsuits facing the bank on account of its ties to Epstein.
- The details of the settlement were not made public.
Class-action settlement with survivors
In 2023, JPMorgan also settled a class action brought by Epstein's victims.
- The suit had accused the big bank of knowingly participating in and benefiting from Epstein's sex trafficking activities.
- An accuser identified as Jane Doe in court documents filed the suit in 2022 on behalf of herself and other survivors.
Zoom in: Disclosures from both the Virgin Islands case and the class action suggested that employees of the bank had flagged Epstein's activity as "suspicious," The New York Times reported in 2023.
- The bank paid $290 million to settle the suit, which was distributed amongst nearly 200 victims, per the Times.
What they're saying: "This case sent a message through this very substantial settlement that banking institutions have a responsibility," Judge Jed Rakoff said at the time.
