NEW YORK - Former Barclays Chief Executive Jes Staley will testify on Thursday in a closed-door U.S. congressional hearing over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, as lawmakers probe the late convicted sex offender’s ties with political and business elites. Staley will appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as part of its investigation into Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Staley became CEO of top British lender Barclays in 2015 and resigned in 2021 after a dispute with the British financial regulator over how he described his ties to Epstein. In June 2025, Staley lost his appeal against a Financial Conduct Authority industry ban for misleading the British regulator about those ties. In that case, the FCA cited a cache of over 1,000 emails between Staley and Epstein, in which Staley described their friendship as “profound” and referred to Epstein as “family.” Staley said he had no recollection of those emails. He has maintained he had a close professional relationship with Epstein, but was unaware of his crimes. Staley is also facing a lawsuit in Los Angeles that claims he and Barclays defrauded shareholders about his relationship with Epstein. The defendants have sought dismissal of the claims. Staley’s lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. Before joining Barclays, Staley was head of the private bank at JPMorgan Chase, where Epstein was one of his clients. The U.S. Virgin Islands sued JPMorgan for allegedly ignoring Epstein’s sex trafficking. JPMorgan denied liability and later settled the lawsuit without admitting wrongdoing. The bank in turn sued Staley, before reaching a confidential settlement with him. Epstein, who died in a New York City prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges, had extensive ties to many prominent people in politics, finance, academia and business, including U.S. President Donald Trump. His death was ruled a suicide. The oversight committee has interviewed figures such as former president Bill Clinton, current Commerce Secretary and former Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, as well as Goldman Sachs senior counsel Kathy Ruemmler. Reporting by Nupur Anand in New York, additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel, editing by Michelle Price and Rod Nickel.
