Former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley was banned from holding senior roles in financial services and fined more than $2 million by the U.K.’s financial regulator on Thursday, after regulators said Staley “recklessly misled” the company and the watchdog agency about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Financial Conduct Authority said Jes Staley “recklessly misled” the company and regulators about ... [+]
The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday its investigation into Staley concluded he “recklessly approved” letters sent to the agency by Barclay’s board that contained “two misleading statements about the nature of his relationship” with Epstein, whom Staley was connected to while he worked as a banker for JPMorgan Chase.
The letter claimed Staley confirmed to the board “he did not have a close relationship” with Epstein, a statement the agency said was false because Staley notified Epstein of his appointment as Barclays’ chief executive before it was publicly announced in 2016, which Staley “understood was ‘very confidential.’”
Staley and Epstein also exchanged more than 1,100 emails, according to the agency, including some in which Staley described Epstein as one of his “deepest” and “most cherished” friends.
The letter also said Staley last contacted Epstein “well before” Staley joined Barclays, though Staley and Epstein remained in contact via email up until three days before Staley was appointed as CEO, the agency said.
The agency said it “makes no findings” that Staley knew about Epstein’s crimes, and Staley has consistently denied knowledge of Epstein’s behavior.
Barclays said in a statement the company was seeking to recoup or cancel about $22 million in compensation that Staley had already been paid or was set to receive, according to the Financial Times.
Staley told the Wall Street Journal through his attorney he will challenge the FCA’s decision, adding before Staley took the role as Barclays’ CEO, “it was known that I had had a relationship with [Epstein]
.”A decision to ban Staley is necessary “if we cannot rely on him to act with integrity by disclosing uncomfortable truths about his close relationship with [Epstein],” the agency said.
Staley resigned as CEO of the London-based Barclays in November 2021 following a regulatory investigation into his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. Staley was sued by JPMorgan earlier this year, after the bank’s officials claimed Staley concealed his relationship with Epstein—who was a client with the bank between 1998 and 2013—and was aware of Epstein’s abuse. JPMorgan claims Staley did not disclose Epstein’s sexual misconduct to the bank, adding Staley “repeatedly abandoned the interests” of the bank “in pursuit of his own personal interests and benefits and those of Epstein. At the time, JPMorgan faced a civil lawsuit by prosecutors in the U.S. Virgin Islands, following allegations the bank benefited from Epstein’s sex trafficking while he was a client. Emails revealed in the lawsuit contain messages between Staley and Epstein, including some redacted emails that allegedly contained photos of “young women in seductive poses,” prosecutors claimed. JPMorgan ultimately settled the lawsuit from the U.S. Virgin Islands for $75 million last month, and settled its Staley lawsuit for an undisclosed amount.
Jamie Dimon Spoke About Jeffrey Epstein With Former JPMorgan Exec Several Times, Report Says (Forbes)
JPMorgan Sues Former Executive Jes Staley Over Jeffrey Epstein Connections (Forbes)