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Britain’s financial regulator has banned former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley from holding senior roles in financial services and fined him £1.8 million over his alleged role in a relationship with Jeffrey Jeffrey Epstein misled regulators about past relationships.
Barclays said Staley would have to forego up to £17.8 million in deferred salary following the Financial Conduct Authority’s decision.
The FCA said on Thursday that Staley “recklessly approved” a letter sent by Barclays’ board to the regulator containing “two misleading statements about the nature of his relationship with late sex offender Epstein”. Leigh had a close relationship with Epstein during his tenure at JPMorgan Chase. , before he joined the British bank.
“Chief executives need to exercise good judgment and set an example for the company’s employees. Mr Staley failed to do this,” FCA said in a statement. “We believe he misled the FCA and Barclays board about the nature of his relationship with Mr Epstein.”
“We cannot expect him to act honestly in disclosing disturbing facts about his close personal relationship with Mr. Epstein,” the regulators concluded.
Staley said he was “disappointed” with FCA’s decision and would appeal. He has taken the case to the FCA’s upper tribunal, which will hear challenges to the FCA’s penalties.
“Had I known Jeffrey Epstein’s true identity, there is no doubt that I would not be in the position I am in today,” Staley said in a statement.
“Prior to my previous role, it was known that I had a relationship with Epstein. Over the past 43 years, I have worked tirelessly and sincerely supported many people/social causes that others may not have done so.”
Barclays said in a statement that as a result of the decision, Staley will forfeit or be ineligible for £17.8 million in deferred salary that was previously frozen. This includes his 2021 bonus and various unvested long-term incentive awards.
Until 2013, Epstein had been a major client of JPMorgan Chase Private Bank, which Staley once ran. The pair formed a close relationship, with Staley visiting Epstein in prison and taking a yacht trip to the sex offender’s island with his family in 2015.
Staley resigned in November 2021 to dispute the allegations after Barclays was presented with the preliminary findings of an FCA investigation into his description of past dealings with Epstein.
That same month, the Financial Times reported that Staley exchanged 1,200 emails with Epstein between 2008 and 2012 while working at JPMorgan Chase, including unexplained terms such as “Snow White.”
In February, a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Virgin Islands against JPMorgan revealed the full text of the email, in which Staley told Epstein: “I am deeply grateful for our friendship. I have rarely been more profound.”
The FCA cited the email as evidence that Staley misled the board by writing a letter “claiming that Mr Staley did not have a close relationship with Mr Epstein”.
“We support the decision announced today by the FCA against Jes Staley. In a separate statement, the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority said senior executives must act with integrity and remain open and cooperative with supervisory authorities.
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