Deutsche Bank, one of Germany’s largest banks, has issued a statement describing its past business dealings with billionaire Jeffrey Epstein as a “mistake,” following new revelations about the relationship. Epstein was arrested in the United States on charges of running a sex trafficking network involving underage girls and was later found dead in his prison cell while awaiting trial.
In a statement to the press regarding its commercial relationship with Epstein, a spokesperson for the Germany-based Deutsche Bank said, “As has been repeatedly emphasized since 2020, our bank acknowledges that it made a mistake by accepting Jeffrey Epstein as a client in 2013.”
The spokesperson noted that the bank contacted authorities immediately after Epstein’s arrest in July 2019 and provided full support to the investigation.
Stating that mechanisms to combat financial crime have since been strengthened, the spokesperson added:
“Deutsche Bank addressed this matter systematically in consultation with regulatory authorities. Since then, significant investments have been made to improve training, controls, and operational processes, and financial crime compliance controls have been considerably tightened. We deeply regret this past business relationship and have learned from this mistake.”
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing had previously commented on the issue, saying that the bank had drawn the necessary lessons from the incident and noting, “Of course, this process also had personnel-related consequences,” referring to internal dismissals.
According to data shared by the bank, Epstein was added to its client portfolio in August 2013, and the relationship began to be terminated in December 2018 through a “relationship exit process.”
Meanwhile, according to international media reports based on the “Epstein Files” released by the U.S. Department of Justice, it was determined that Epstein opened more than 40 accounts at Deutsche Bank and managed a significant portion of his wealth at the institution.