JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Deutsche Bank AG were accused of enabling the sexual abuse of Jeffrey Epstein in New York class action suits that allege the banks turned a blind eye in order to "churn profits."
The lawsuits, filed separately in a New York court, allege the banks had "knowingly benefited and received things of value for assisting, supporting, facilitating, and otherwise providing the most critical service for the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking organization."
JPMorgan was accused in the suit of "financially benefiting from participating" in the alleged sex trafficking through providing financial support from 1998 to August 2013. Deutsche Bank was accused of knowing that they would "earn million of dollars" from its relationship with Epstein.
Both suits are seeking unspecified damages and ask to be certified as a class action. A Deutsche Bank spokeswoman said the claim "lacks merit" and the bank will present its arguments in court. A spokesman for JPMorgan in London declined to comment.
"Epstein and his co-conspirators could not have victimized without assistance from wealthy individuals and financial institutions," Bradley Edwards, a lawyer at Edwards Pottinger, one of the firms bringing the suit, said. "We will not stop fighting for the survivors until everyone is held responsible."
The suits threaten to return the spotlight to Wall Street and the nature of its links to Epstein. A Who's Who of prominent financiers, entrepreneurs, politicians and even royals have been tainted by their association with the convicted pedophile.
Epstein was found dead in his U.S. jail cell in 2019, after being arrested and charged with sex trafficking. Epstein spent decades cultivating ties to U.S. and British elites including several Wall Street figures.
The UK's Prince Andrew had to withdraw from public duties after a disastrous television interview about his ties to Epstein.
