Ex-Barclays boss Staley fights for status over Jeffrey Epstein hyperlinks

Former Barclays boss Jes Staley has begun a authorized bid to overturn a ban from the UK’s monetary companies trade, associated to his hyperlinks to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.

The Monetary Conduct Authority (FCA) proposed the management ban in 2023, alongside a £1.8m superb, discovering that Mr Staley had made deceptive statements about his relationship with Epstein in correspondence with the watchdog.

Mr Staley’s barrister advised the Higher Tribunal in a written assertion that Mr Staley, who had stop his job at Barclays in 2021 to contest the FCA’s findings, admits a “shut skilled relationship” with Epstein however denies they had been associates.

Cash newest: Do not fall for this ‘Apple charger’ trick

The FCA’s ruling associated to the contents of a letter despatched by the Barclays chairman in 2019, however reviewed by Mr Staley, which summarised the depth of the 2 males’s ties in response to a request for “assurance” from the regulator.

The watchdog decided it contained two deceptive statements over their relationship, specifically over how shut they had been and that Mr Staley’s final contact with Epstein was “effectively earlier than he joined Barclays in 2015”.

The FCA additional discovered that they maintained contact by means of Mr Staley’s daughter as much as a minimum of February 2017.

Its barrister, Leigh-Ann Mulcahy KC, mentioned in her written opening submission that he acted “recklessly and with out integrity” by permitting the letter to be despatched with the deceptive statements.

“Mr Staley has constantly mis-stated the character of his relationship with Mr Epstein, particularly downplaying the
closeness and extent of their connection, and the time they ceased contact,” she added.

The FCA’s case contains greater than 1,000 emails between the pair, some offered by JPMorgan and
others from Epstein’s property, during which Staley was mentioned to have described their friendship as “profound” and referred to Epstein as “household”.

“Whereas the origin of the connection was skilled, it developed into a private relationship,” the barrister mentioned.

Epstein killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019 whereas awaiting trial on intercourse trafficking fees.

Along with his proposed FCA superb, Mr Staley missed out on pay and bonus awards above £18m after he left Barclays underneath a cloud.

Mr Staley’s barrister, Robert Smith KC, argued the letter despatched by Barclays chair Nigel Higgins to the FCA was “supposed to realize just one objective, which was to tell the (FCA) that neither Mr Staley nor Barclays had had any
data of or involvement in Mr Epstein’s illegal conduct”.

He added that the letter was not meant to provide a full account of their interactions.

Mr Staley is predicted to provide proof to the listening to in London subsequent week.

The Higher Tribunal can also be anticipated to listen to from Financial institution of England governor Andrew Bailey, who was in control of the FCA between 2016 and 2020.