How did Jeffrey Epstein, a college dropout who began by teaching math and physics, amass a vast fortune?
Early on, Epstein — from a working-class Coney Island family — benefited from luck and connections. He landed a job at investment bank Bear Stearns, gaining exposure to high finance and in 1980 became a limited partner. After five years he left but used his Bear Stearns background and contacts as proof of credibility.
A man of mystery in finance
After leaving Bear Stearns, Epstein resurfaced in financial circles but left few traces of exactly what he did. “He was a cypher,” Charles Gasparino, a senior correspondent at Fox Business Network, said in the Netflix documentary Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich. Unlike most on Wall Street, Epstein avoided a clear paper trail. People talked about him despite his elusive footprint.
Alleged ties to a Ponzi scheme
Steven Hoffenberg, former CEO of Towers Financial Corporation, later said he hired Epstein in the late 1980s and called him his “partner in crime.” Hoffenberg ran what became a $460-million Ponzi scheme; he said Epstein handled the securities side, manipulating stock prices and trading illegally. Hoffenberg pleaded guilty in 1993 and was sentenced to 20 years. Epstein was never charged, leaving his exact role and any financial gains unclear.
The Les Wexner connection
In the mid-1980s Epstein met Les Wexner, the retail magnate behind Victoria’s Secret and The Limited. Epstein pitched himself as a financial adviser and by 1991 had control of Wexner’s personal finances. He paid himself well and acquired properties and a private jet. They split in 2007 amid scandal, and Wexner later said Epstein had “misappropriated vast sums” from him.
Where Epstein’s initial wealth came from
US prosecutors’ reports say Epstein stole or misappropriated several hundred million dollars from Wexner. That misconduct, together with fees Epstein paid himself, appears to account for much of his wealth, according to lawyers in the report. Epstein reportedly bought Wexner’s private jet and a New York townhouse for fractions of their true value, and sometimes bought property on Wexner’s behalf then resold it to himself at discounted prices. In 2008 Epstein returned $100 million to Wexner in a private settlement rather than face public litigation; Wexner cut ties but did not file an official complaint. Still, Epstein retained assets and substantial cash.
Using Wexner’s credibility
Wexner’s trust gave Epstein cover and credibility with others. He used the association to gain access to an elite network, invoking prominent names such as Clinton and Rockefeller and drawing figures like private equity billionaire Leon Black into his circle. Over time there were quiet allegations of excessive fees or exploitation, but Wexner was the only prominent figure to publicly accuse Epstein of outright theft.
Banks and business relationships
Even after Epstein became a registered sex offender in 2008 and served jail time, people and companies continued to engage with him. He used JPMorgan from 1998 until the bank closed his accounts in 2013; the bank later settled claims related to Epstein for hundreds of millions of dollars. Deutsche Bank took him on in 2013 and later held roughly 40 accounts before ending the relationship shortly before his death; it has since paid settlements to victims without admitting wrongdoing.
What happened to Epstein’s fortune?
Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019, on sex-trafficking charges and was found dead in his cell on August 10, 2019. His will, probated in the US Virgin Islands where he was a resident, listed assets totaling $577 million: $56.5 million in cash, nearly $194 million in hedge funds and private equity, about $112 million in equities, plus properties in the Virgin Islands, New Mexico, New York City, Palm Beach and Paris. Taxes, maintenance, legal costs and large settlements have reduced the estate.
Investigations and conclusions
People continue to probe the origins of Epstein’s wealth. The New York Times, after a months-long investigation, concluded that Epstein built his fortune through “scams, theft and lies,” calling him “less a financial genius than a prodigious manipulator and liar” willing to operate on the edge of criminality to gain wealth and power.
Edited by: Ashutosh Pandey