Bank of America has agreed to pay $72.5 million to survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation who allege the bank enabled and profited from his crimes.
The lawsuit, filed last year, alleges that the nation’s second-largest bank provided banking services to Epstein and his sex-trafficking operation, along with accounts used by victims and associates — among them Ghislaine Maxwell and Leon Black, the former CEO of Apollo Global Management.
U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff, who is presiding over the case, will hold a hearing in April to determine whether to approve the settlement.
The deal does not include an admission of liability by the bank.
“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,” a Bank of America spokesperson told NBC News.
Attorneys for the victims didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The settlement covers all women “who were sexually abused or trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein, or by any person who is connected to or otherwise associated with Jeffrey Epstein or any Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking venture” between June 30, 2008, and July 6, 2019, according to a filing by the victims’ lawyers. Attorneys for the survivors say at least 60 women who were victimized by Epstein during that period.
The plaintiffs allege the bank failed to properly monitor accounts and did not file timely suspicious activity reports concerning questionable transactions, including transfers Black made to Epstein from his Bank of America account. Among them: $170 million described as payment for “tax and estate planning advice,” which the plaintiffs contend was used to fund Epstein’s trafficking enterprise.
Black had been scheduled for an eight-hour deposition this month, with victim’s attorney Sigrid McCawley describing him as a “critical witness.” However, he avoided the deposition when the parties notified the court of a settlement last week.
Black is not a defendant in the suit against Bank of America. He has denied any wrongdoing or knowledge of Epstein’s criminal conduct. A spokesperson for Black declined to comment.
Epstein survivors have brought similar lawsuits against JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank that were later settled for hundreds of millions of dollars. JPMorgan agreed to pay $290 million, and Deutsche Bank paid $75 million to victims.
