JPMorgan Chase’s decision to stop doing business with Jeffrey Epstein became easier after there was no one at the bank to advocate for him, a top executive at the largest U.S. lender has said in a deposition taken in connection with two lawsuits arising from the institution’s nearly 15-year relationship with the disgraced financier.
Mary Erdoes, head of JPMorgan’s asset and wealth management division, said in a March deposition reviewed by The New York Times that she decided to dismiss Epstein as a client in summer 2013 because of concerns about repeated large cash withdrawals from his many accounts with the bank.
She said an annual review of Epstein’s accounts took place several months after James Staley, who had been a top private banker at JPMorgan and was the main advocate for Epstein, left the bank in January 2013.