JPMorgan pays $75M to settle US Virgin Islands suit over Epstein ties

investmentnews.com:

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reached settlements with former executive Jes Staley and the U.S. Virgin Islands over ties to Jeffrey Epstein, as it seeks to end its legal woes over its banking relationship to the deceased pedophile.

The biggest U.S. bank tentatively agreed to pay $75 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands, according to a statement Tuesday — less than half of the $190 million the territory had sought. JPMorgan also reached a confidential agreement with Staley to resolve the firm’s claims against him.

“JPMorgan Chase believes this settlement is in the best interest of all parties,” JPMorgan said in the statement. “While the settlement does not involve admissions of liability, the firm deeply regrets any association with this man, and would never have continued doing business with him if it believed he was using the bank in any way to commit his heinous crimes.”

Attorneys for Staley did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The settlements cap nearly a year of public battles over JPMorgan’s ties to Epstein, which had become a reputational headache for the bank. A Jane Doe victim filed a proposed class action against JPMorgan in November, which it agreed to settle for $290 million in June.

The tentative deal announced Tuesday includes $30 million for U.S. Virgin Islands human trafficking charities and a mental health fund for Epstein survivors, $25 million to enhance local infrastructure and law enforcement to prevent sex crimes, and $20 million in attorneys’ fees.

“This settlement is an historic victory for survivors and for state enforcement, and it should sound the alarm on Wall Street about banks’ responsibilities under the law to detect and prevent human trafficking,” U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General