Jeffrey Epstein in 2004.
Rick Friedman | Corbis News | Getty Images
A top House Democrat asked four major bank CEOs to share a series of financial documents linked to Jeffrey Epstein, advancing an investigation into the notorious sexual predator, after lawmakers’ efforts to subpoena the banks for the documents were blocked by Republicans.
House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., in letters to CEOs obtained by CNBC, questioned how Epstein and his co-conspirators could have conducted suspicious transactions amounting to $1.5 billion “for years without ever being caught.”
The letters were sent Wednesday to JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Bank of America Chef Brian Moynihan, German Bank leader Christian Sewing and Bank of New York Mellon CEO Robin Vince.
Download Raskin’s letters at Dimon, Moynihan, Sewing And Vince.
The letters came as the Trump administration continues to face pressure — from Democrats and some Republican supporters of President Donald Trump — over its handling of Epstein-related matters.
The wealthy financier and sex offender, who was once a friend of Trump, committed suicide while in prison facing federal child sex trafficking charges in 2019.
In his letters, Raskin bluntly asked each CEO if their bank would “help reveal the truth” about Epstein and his co-conspirators, or if they would “choose to be part of the cover-up of this massive international sex trafficking ring that has victimized more than 1,000 women and girls?”
Deutsche Bank, in a statement to CNBC, said it “takes its legal obligations seriously, including responding appropriately to authorized investigations and proceedings.” The statement did not explicitly commit to complying with Raskin’s requests.
“The bank regrets our historical connection with Jeffrey Epstein,” Deutsche Bank said. “We have cooperated with regulators and law enforcement agencies regarding their investigations and have demonstrated transparency by closing gaps and simultaneously investing in strengthening our control environment.”
JPMorgan declined to comment on Raskin’s request.
The congressman, in his letter to Dimon, noted that the CEO had recently said, in reference to Epstein, that he and JPMorgan “regret any association with this man.”
Raskin also noted that Dimon committed to providing information to the Judiciary Committee.
But Dimon had made clear he would comply with a subpoena, saying: “If it’s a legal requirement, we will comply. We have no problem with that.”
JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank both paid substantial sums to settle lawsuits accusing them of facilitating and financially profiting from the sex trafficking of their client, Epstein.
In 2023, JPMorgan agreed to pay $290 million to settle a class-action lawsuit on behalf of Epstein’s victims and reached a $75 million settlement in a separate case brought by the U.S. Virgin Islands.
That same year, Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $75 million to Epstein’s victims to settle their lawsuit.
Bank of America and BNY Mellon did not respond to CNBC’s requests for comment on Raskin’s letters to their CEOs.
Raskin wrote that he was sending the letters after Republicans, who hold the majority on the judiciary panel, voted against Democratic members’ attempt to issue subpoenas to the four bank CEOs last month.
The subpoena attempt failed on a near party-line vote. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the only Republican to vote in favor of the subpoenas.
The subpoena request came at the end of a hearing with FBI Director Kash Patel, whom Democrats questioned about the Trump administration’s handling of the so-called Epstein files.
Raskin, in his letters, claimed that Patel’s testimony showed that his FBI “failed to ‘follow the money'” regarding suspicious Epstein-related transactions that banks had reported to the Treasury Department.
Raskin’s letters focused on records known as suspicious activity reports, SARs, which banks are required to file when they notice certain unusual financial activities that may be linked to illegal conduct.
Lawmakers accused each of the four banks of ignoring or failing to adequately report red flags about Epstein’s financial transfers.
Deutsche Bank, for example, “witnessed but failed to report a flood of red flags about Mr. Epstein, including his lawyers sending millions of dollars to women with Eastern European surnames,” Raskin told Sewing.
JPMorgan “did not file any requests for information” before Epstein’s death, “despite the egregious nature” of his activities, Raskin wrote to Dimon.
Bank of America appears to have filed only two “significantly delayed” requests for information regarding “$170 million in transactions between Mr. Epstein and billionaire investor Leon Black,” the lawmaker told Moynihan.
BNY Mellon allegedly filed requests for information related to $378 million in Epstein-related payments only “years after Mr. Epstein’s death,” Raskin wrote to Vince.
Raskin’s letters cite the results of an investigation by Senate Finance Committee member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who says banking records held by the Treasury Department show Epstein-related transactions totaling at least $1.5 billion.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., who is conducting his own investigation into Epstein’s financial trail, said in mid-September that the Treasury Department was committed to sharing documents with his panel.
Raskin wants banks to provide full information on any transactions relating to Epstein, his convicted accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, or their victims who have been identified for “further review, inspection or discussion.”
It also requested all internal communications and discussions with federal authorities about Epstein, as well as any risk assessments and due diligence reports the banks may have created.
The requests relate to documents dating from 1998 to the present. Raskin asked them to deliver the documents to his committee by 5 p.m. ET on October 22.
Raskin appealed to the banks’ reputation in his letters.
“If you truly regret JPMorgan’s shameful association with Mr. Epstein, we hope you will work with us to quickly produce these documents and help us ensure that neither your bank nor any other U.S. bank ever again authorizes or funds a criminal sex trafficking ring like Mr. Epstein’s,” he wrote to Dimon.
— CNBC Hugh son contributed to this report.
