The CEO of JPMorgan Chase, Jamie Dimon, is scheduled to provide a testimony under oath regarding his bank’s choice to continue doing business with Jeffrey Epstein, the notorious financier. This will be part of two ongoing legal proceedings, initiated by an alleged victim of Epstein and the other by the US Virgin Islands. The deposition will be held behind closed doors in May.
In 2019, it was reported that JPMorgan had a long-standing relationship with Epstein and had provided him with banking services. Following Epstein’s arrest on sex trafficking charges, JPMorgan closed his accounts and launched an internal review of its dealings with him.
JPMorgan Chase has faced criticism for its relationship with Epstein, and the bank has launched an internal review of its dealings with him. The bank has stated that it regrets its association with Epstein and that it should have terminated its relationship with him sooner.
The Financial Times reported:
The lawsuits claim JPMorgan, which banked Epstein for 15 years from 1998 to 2013, benefited from human trafficking and ignored several internal warnings about its client’s illegal behaviour. The lender has described the claims as meritless.
The pre-trial process unearthed communications between JPMorgan employees that contained a reference to a “Dimon review” into the bank’s relationship with Epstein. The bank has denied that its CEO had any knowledge of such a review.
A person familiar with the bank’s internal probe said there was no record found of Dimon being in direct communication with Epstein or being included in any discussion over retaining him as a client…
Lawyers for JPMorgan had previously resisted attempts to depose Dimon and had tried to limit the range of documents handed over during the pre-trial process.
Last week, Judge Jed Rakoff, who is presiding over the cases, denied in part JPMorgan’s request to dismiss the lawsuits and allowed some of the claims against the bank — as well as some against Deutsche Bank, which is being sued separately by an alleged Epstein victim — to proceed.
He later ordered JPMorgan to hand over documents containing communications involving Dimon and former general counsel Steve Cutler from before 2006, the year that Epstein was first arrested.
A provisional trial date for both cases has been set for October.
Dimon’s looming deposition comes after other senior figures at the bank, including Mary Erdoes, the head of the bank’s $4tn asset and wealth management business, were scheduled to be interviewed by plaintiffs’ lawyers as part of the lawsuits.
Epstein worked with J.P. Morgan in various capacities, such as managing personal finances for some of the bank’s clients, providing tax advice, and facilitating donations to J.P. Morgan’s charitable foundation. Epstein’s relationship with J.P. Morgan reportedly spanned several years, although the exact duration of their association is unclear.
In addition to its financial power, JPMorgan Chase & Co. also wields significant political influence, as it is one of the largest donors to political campaigns in the United States. The company’s executives also have close ties to policymakers and regulators, which can give them an advantage in shaping financial regulations and policies.
Scoop, w/@FTJFranklin:
The stakes are getting higher for Jamie Dimon, who will now be interviewed under oath over @jpmorgan's decision to retain Jeffrey Epstein as a client even after the disgraced financier was arrested over sex crimes.https://t.co/zPMhEF7OdQ
— Joe Miller (@JoeMillerJr) March 28, 2023