JP Morgan’s so-called “internal investigation” into its relationship with Jeffrey Epstein was less about uncovering the truth and more about protecting its image. Framed as a move toward accountability, the inquiry conveniently failed to hold any top executive meaningfully responsible—despite damning evidence that Epstein’s suspicious activity triggered compliance warnings for years. The bank processed hundreds of millions in transactions for Epstein, including payments to known victims and co-conspirators, while turning a blind eye to the very red flags their own systems flagged. Yet, the internal probe largely focused on low-level compliance missteps and retroactive policy tweaks, rather than confronting the systemic rot or those in leadership who allowed the relationship to thrive unchecked.
Worse, the investigation reeked of damage control. It came only after mounting lawsuits and public scrutiny made silence unsustainable, and even then, it felt like a performance choreographed for media consumption. Jes Staley, the high-level executive with deep Epstein ties, somehow skated past intense scrutiny for far too long, raising serious questions about how thorough—or willfully blind—the internal review actually was. The bank’s leadership pointed to the report as proof of reform while quietly settling with Epstein’s victims and continuing to dodge questions about who knew what and when. In the end, the so-called “investigation” served as yet another bread-and-circus exercise, meant to pacify critics without exposing the deeper corruption at play.
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JPMorgan report found exec invited Epstein to meetings with foreign government officials | Daily Mail Online