Bank of America has agreed to pay $72.5 million to settle a proposed class action lawsuit alleging the bank facilitated financier Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking operation, according to a Manhattan federal court filing released Friday evening.
The deal, which requires sign-off from a judge, would pay “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, inclusive,” the filing said.
Lawyers have said they are aware of “at least 60 women who were victimized by Epstein” during that time period, the filing added.
US District Judge Jed Rakoff, who is overseeing the case, gave the parties a March 27 deadline to file the terms of settlement and an April 2 hearing to decide whether to approve them.
Bank of America said in a statement that the deal allows it to “put this matter behind us and provides further closure for the plaintiffs.” The bank continues to deny wrongdoing: “Bank of America did not facilitate sex trafficking crimes,” it said.
Epstein, known for rubbing elbows with titans of industry and political powerhouses, was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell the morning of August 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
JPMorgan agreed to pay $290 million, and Deutsche Bank agreed to a $75 million payout, to settle similar lawsuits brought by the same group of lawyers representing Epstein victims.
Rakoff previously tossed a parallel lawsuit the attorneys brought against BNY — formerly Bank of New York Mellon Corp. — but allowed portions of the case against Bank of America to move forward.
