JP Morgan’s Jamie Dimon under fire over whether he lobbied Treasury on Epstein advice
The boss of JP Morgan is facing mounting scrutiny from US lawmakers on whether he lobbied the UK government on tax affairs on the advice of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Jamie Dimon – who is well-regarded as one of the world’s most influential figures in finance – said under oath in 2023 that he had never met Epstein and rejected any ties to retaining him as a banking client following concerns around his sex crimes.
But earlier this year, the $43m banker was caught in the crosshairs of another drop of the Epstein files from the US Department of Justice.
The documents revealed disgraced peer Peter Mandelson telling Epstein that Dimon should “mildly threaten” the UK Treasury over a tax on banker bonuses.
The levy, which was introduced in the fallout of the financial crisis, dictated that bonuses over £25,000 would pay an additional 50 per cent tax rate.
US senate presses JP Morgan boss
The US Senate banking committee has now turned the spotlight on Dimon, with top Democrat writing to the exec stating it was “critical” that the public “fully understand the extent of any interactions the bank and you had with Epstein”.
Alistair Darling, who was Chancellor during the banker bonuses debacle, recalled a call with Dimon in his memoirs where the banking chief was “very, very angry” about the proposed tax.
He added that the bank chief had threatened to halt investment in a new London headquarters as a result of the proposal. Darling would go on to push ahead with the tax, which collected more than £2bn from the banking industry.
In her letter – first reported by the Financial Times – Warren said Dimon must explain the issues raised from the messages as she set out a series of questions and requests for documents.
“These resurfaced emails and related reporting raise serious questions regarding the extent of the bank’s relationship with Epstein, and your knowledge of these ties,” Warren wrote.
JP Morgan was one of a number of clients part of Epstein’s advisory firm Global Counsel, which was established after he left government in 2010.
A spokesperson for JPMorgan said: “Any association with the man was a mistake, and we regret it, but we would not have continued doing business with him had we believed he was engaged in ongoing crimes.
“We exited him as a client in 2013 – years before his federal sex-trafficking arrest and years after the government had damning information they kept from us.”
The bank said Dimon was not involved in “any decisions” around Epstein’s account and reiterated the pair had never met. It also added the banking chief regularly spoke his mind on government policy and had his own views on the matters.