JPMorgan Chase said Tuesday it will pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit by the U.S. Virgin Islands alleging that the huge American bank facilitated and benefited from sex trafficking of young women by its longtime customer Jeffrey Epstein.
JPMorgan did not admit any wrongdoing in the settlement, which will give $55 million to Virgin Islands charities and the American territory’s anti-trafficking efforts.
The remaining $20 million will cover attorneys’ fees incurred by the Virgin Islands as part of the litigation in federal court in New York.
The Virgin Islands said the deal “includes several substantial commitments by JPMorgan Chase to identify, report, and cut off support for potential human trafficking, including establishing and implementing comprehensive policies and procedures.”
Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell attend de Grisogono Sponsors The 2005 Wall Street Concert Series Benefitting Wall Street Rising, with a Performance by Rod Stewart at Cipriani Wall Street on March 15, 2005 in New York City.
Joe Schildhorn | Patrick McMullan | Getty Images
The territory said that $10 million of the money received would be used to create a fund to provide mental health services for Epstein’s victims.
JPMorgan also said Tuesday that it had reached a settlement with Jes Staley, a former executive at the bank who had been friends with Epstein, to resolve claims by JPMorgan that he was responsible for any civil damages and costs associated with Epstein-related litigation.
The terms of the agreement with Staley are confidential.
JPMorgan said that it “deeply regrets” its association with Epstein, who was a client from 1998 until 2013.
Virgin Islands Attorney General Ariel Smith said the agreement settles what was the first enforcement action against a bank for facilitating and profiting from human trafficking.
“As part of the settlement, JPMorgan has agreed to implement and maintain meaningful anti-trafficking measures, which will help prevent human trafficking in the future,”…
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