Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million (£60 million) to resolve a lawsuit alleging that it facilitated Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking operation.
The unidentified woman filed the lawsuit, alleging that the banking behemoth continued to do business with Epstein despite knowing that his accounts were used to facilitate atrocities.
She also claimed that Epstein abused her and sold her to his associates.
The Deutsche Bank declined to comment when contacted by the BBC.
The woman, identified as “Jane Doe” in court documents, filed the class-action lawsuit in New York last November on behalf of herself and other women who had allegedly been abused by the deceased American financier.
She stated that Deutsche Bank “chose profit over following the law” because it knew it would “earn millions of dollars from facilitating Epstein’s sex trafficking”
The woman also claimed that Epstein sexually abused her and that she was trafficked to his associates for approximately 15 years, receiving cash compensation for her sexual activities.
It is anticipated that the settlement will be used to compensate dozens of women.
Edwards Pottinger, one of the law firms representing the unidentified woman, told the BBC that the settlement was “likely the largest sex-trafficking settlement involving a banking institution in US history.”
“The settlement will allow dozens of Jeffrey Epstein’s survivors to finally attempt to restore their faith in our system, knowing that all individuals and entities who facilitated Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation will be held accountable,” the law firm explained.
Deutsche Bank previously requested dismissal of the lawsuit.
The bank’s spokesman, Dylan Riddle, declined to comment on the settlement on Thursday, but stated that the institution had “made significant progress in resolving a number of past issues.”
Mr. Riddle added that the bank had invested over €4 billion ($4.3 billion; £3.5 billion) to enhance its controls, training, and operational processes, as well as to expand its team dedicated to combating financial crime.
Epstein died in a New York prison cell on August 10, 2019, while awaiting his sex trafficking prosecution without the possibility of parole.
It occurred more than a decade after he was convicted of procuring prostitution from a juvenile and registered as a sexual offender.