Bank of America has agreed to pay $72.5 million to settle a lawsuit alleging it facilitated Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking operation, making it the third major financial institution to pay victims after JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank.
The proposed class-action settlement was filed Friday in New York federal court and now awaits approval from Judge Jed Rakoff at an April 2 hearing. The bank denies any wrongdoing, stating in court documents that the settlement is “no admission of liability.”
“While we stand by our prior statements made in the filings in this case, including that Bank of America did not facilitate sex trafficking crimes, this resolution allows us to put this matter behind us and provides further closure for the plaintiffs,” the bank told the BBC in a statement Saturday.
The Victim’s Account
The lawsuit was filed in October by a Florida woman identified as “Jane Doe,” who says she was abused by Epstein “on at least 100 occasions” between 2011 and 2019. She held two accounts at Bank of America at the direction of Epstein’s business team.
She says she met Epstein in Russia in 2011 and was controlled and sexually abused by him up until his death in a Manhattan jail in August 2019. Epstein’s death was ruled a suicide, and Jane Doe called it her “ultimate escape.”
The lawsuit alleges that Bank of America had “a plethora of information regarding Epstein’s sex trafficking operation but chose profit over protecting the victims.”
Suspicious Activity
The complaint cites “incredibly alarming and erratic banking behavior” in Jane Doe’s accounts, which were used by Epstein’s team. Despite red flags — including accounts opened for a young Russian woman with no visible income — the bank did not intervene.
The case also focused on more than $150 million that Apollo Global co-founder Leon Black paid Epstein through Bank of America accounts for what the lawsuit called “purported ‘tax and estate planning advice.'”
Black, who stepped down from Apollo amid scrutiny over his ties to Epstein, has denied wrongdoing. He was questioned as part of the case last week.
A Pattern of Settlements
Bank of America’s payout follows similar resolutions by other major banks that did business with Epstein:
· JPMorgan Chase: $290 million settlement in 2023
· Deutsche Bank: $75 million settlement in 2023
Both banks also denied wrongdoing in their settlements. Bank of America had previously urged the court to dismiss the lawsuit, calling the complaint “threadbare and meritless” and arguing it had provided routine services to people who at the time had no known links to Epstein.
‘One More Step to Justice’
Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for the victims, told the BBC earlier this month that the resolution was “one more step on the road to much deserved justice.”
For Jane Doe and other victims of Epstein’s trafficking network, the settlement represents financial compensation for years of abuse. But the lawsuits have also served another purpose: forcing major financial institutions to answer publicly for their role in enabling Epstein’s operation.
The $72.5 million payout will be distributed among victims. Lawyers may seek up to 30% — about $21.8 million — in legal fees, subject to court approval.
What Comes Next
Judge Rakoff’s April 2 hearing will determine whether the settlement is approved. If it stands, Bank of America will join the list of institutions that have paid victims for their role in Epstein’s empire.
For victims, the money is meaningful. But the question that drove the lawsuit — how a convicted sex offender operated openly with the help of major banks for years — remains unanswered.
Bank of America says it wants to put the matter behind it. For the women who survived Epstein, that may never be possible. But one more bank has been held accountable.
