Banking Committee Democrats Call on Chairman Scott to Immediately Hold Hearing on How U.S. Financial System Enabled Jeffrey Epstein's Crimes

Banking Committee Democrats Call on Chairman Scott to Immediately Hold Hearing on How U.S. Financial System Enabled Jeffrey Epstein's Crimes

"Congress must understand the vulnerabilities to our financial system that criminals like Mr. Epstein can exploit."

Text of Letter (PDF)

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and Committee Democrats urged Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) to immediately hold a hearing regarding Jeffrey Epstein's use of the U.S. financial system. The Senators' request comes in light of recent reporting on JPMorgan's extended business relationship with Mr. Epstein.

The signers of the letter include: Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD).

"JPMorgan, for example, reportedly opened at least 134 accounts and processed over $1 billion in transactions for Mr. Epstein-despite warnings by bank employees that doing so could enable Mr. Epstein's crimes," the Banking Committee Senators wrote. "The Committee should call employees of financial institutions that worked with Mr. Epstein, including JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, to testify under oath about the extent to which their banks may have enabled Mr. Epstein's crimes. This testimony will help inform congressional efforts to ensure that our banking system has adequate safeguards against illicit activity."

The Senators continued: "Congress must understand the vulnerabilities to our financial system that criminals like Mr. Epstein can exploit. As the Trump Administration takes steps to loosen safeguards-such as rolling back anti-money laundering rules, halting enforcement of laws to combat anonymous shell companies, and firing bank examiners-our understanding of these vulnerabilities is more important than ever. This recent report makes clear: we need more transparency, not less."

The Senators continued: "The American people deserve to know what happened at JPMorgan and other banks that financed Mr. Epstein. The Committee should hold a public hearing as soon as possible to examine failures and advance reforms that protect our communities."

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