Bank of America has reached a $72.5 million (£54.6 million) settlement in a lawsuit brought on behalf of victims of Jeffrey Epstein, who had accused the bank of facilitating his sex trafficking operation.
The proposed class-action lawsuit was filed in October by a Florida woman who claims she was abused by Epstein on at least 100 occasions between 2011 and 2019 and had two accounts at Bank of America directed by his business team.
It alleged that the bank had a plethora of information regarding Epstein's sex trafficking operation but chose profit over protecting the victims.
In the court documents, Bank of America stated the settlement is no admission of liability or wrongdoing on its part. The settlement was agreed upon earlier this month, but the specifics of the deal were not disclosed until recently filed documents in a New York federal court, now pending a judge's approval.
Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for the victims, explained that the resolution was one more step on the road to much deserved justice. This marks the third settlement by major banks in relation to Epstein, following JP Morgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, which agreed to pay $290 million (£218 million) and $75 million respectively.
The lawsuit, which cites a record of incredibly alarming and erratic banking behavior in the victim's accounts, claims that her banking services were used by Epstein's team. The victim has said she met Epstein in Russia in 2011 and was subjected to control and sexual abuse until his death in jail in August 2019, which she referred to as her ultimate escape.
The lawsuit also highlights over $150 million paid to Epstein by billionaire Leon Black, via his own Bank of America account, for supposed tax and estate planning advice. Black, who stepped down from Apollo Global amid scrutiny of his connections to Epstein, has denied any wrongdoing and was questioned as part of the case last week.
Earlier, Bank of America had pushed to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing it provided routine services to clients with no known links to Epstein, calling the complaint threadbare and meritless. The bank reiterated that it did not facilitate sex trafficking crimes, yet recognized that this resolution allows them to move past the matter and provides closure for the plaintiffs.
The proposed class-action lawsuit was filed in October by a Florida woman who claims she was abused by Epstein on at least 100 occasions between 2011 and 2019 and had two accounts at Bank of America directed by his business team.
It alleged that the bank had a plethora of information regarding Epstein's sex trafficking operation but chose profit over protecting the victims.
In the court documents, Bank of America stated the settlement is no admission of liability or wrongdoing on its part. The settlement was agreed upon earlier this month, but the specifics of the deal were not disclosed until recently filed documents in a New York federal court, now pending a judge's approval.
Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for the victims, explained that the resolution was one more step on the road to much deserved justice. This marks the third settlement by major banks in relation to Epstein, following JP Morgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, which agreed to pay $290 million (£218 million) and $75 million respectively.
The lawsuit, which cites a record of incredibly alarming and erratic banking behavior in the victim's accounts, claims that her banking services were used by Epstein's team. The victim has said she met Epstein in Russia in 2011 and was subjected to control and sexual abuse until his death in jail in August 2019, which she referred to as her ultimate escape.
The lawsuit also highlights over $150 million paid to Epstein by billionaire Leon Black, via his own Bank of America account, for supposed tax and estate planning advice. Black, who stepped down from Apollo Global amid scrutiny of his connections to Epstein, has denied any wrongdoing and was questioned as part of the case last week.
Earlier, Bank of America had pushed to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing it provided routine services to clients with no known links to Epstein, calling the complaint threadbare and meritless. The bank reiterated that it did not facilitate sex trafficking crimes, yet recognized that this resolution allows them to move past the matter and provides closure for the plaintiffs.
