Senior Citigroup executive departs after reports of Epstein meetings
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A senior executive at one of the largest banks in the United States, Citigroup, has resigned after reports of his meetings with Jeffrey Epstein. The executive in question, Paul Barrett, had resigned from the bank a few days after media reports of him meeting with Epstein when he worked at JPMorgan Chase.
Senior Citigroup executive exits amid reports of Epstein meetings
Citigroup announced the departure of Barrett from the bank on Tuesday after it was revealed that he had meetings with the disgraced financier Epstein. The bank released a statement saying that until recently, Citigroup had remained unaware of any association between Barrett and Epstein.
The statement from the bank said, “Until recently, Citi was unaware of Paul Barrett’s association with Jeffrey Epstein, which predated his employment at our firm. Mr. Barrett is no longer employed by Citi.”
Before he departed from Citigroup, Barrett was the head of the North American private capital group at its private division. A report by the Wall Street Journal, Barrett met with Epstein even after JPMorgan Chase terminated its deal with the late convicted sexual offender in 2013.
Barrett has yet to speak on his exit from Citigroup. He worked at JPMorgan for 18 years until 2018. In 2019, he joined Citigroup, where he connected the bank’s wealthy clientele division with its investment bank.
On April 18, a federal judge ordered the CEO of JPMorgan Chase, Jamie Dimon, to set aside two days for depositions regarding the details he knew about the bank’s relationship with its former client, Epstein.
JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States. The bank faces multiple lawsuits from the women claiming that Epstein sexually abused them. These women seek damages from the bank and the US Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a home.
JPMorgan is scheduled to have a trial later this year over allegations that the bank benefited from the crimes committed by Epstein. However, the bank’s lawyers have termed these allegations as “meritless.
The lawsuits against JPMorgan have shed light on the alleged internal deliberations at the bank regarding its relationship with Epstein. Epstein had a relationship with the bank from 1998 to 2013. The lawsuits have also alleged that the executives at the bank sometimes joked about Epstein’s interest in underage girls.
Bank executives who knew Epstein are under pressure
The departure of Barrett from JPMorgan Chase marks the latest fallout for banking executives that knew Epstein. Epstein committed suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal charges on allegations that he trafficked underage girls.
In 2021, Je Staley, who was in charge of JPMorgan’s relationship with Epstein, resigned from his role as the chief executive of Barclays. His departure came after an investigation by UK regulators was conducted into how he understood their association.
Two years ago, Leon Black resigned from his leadership positions at Apollo Global Management following controversy about his association with Epstein.
