Deutsche Bank received final approval from a U.S. judge on Friday for a $75 million settlement it reached with victims of Jeffrey Epstein, who accused the German company of masterminding the late financier’s alleged sex trafficking to have made it easier.
U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff, who gave preliminary approval to the deal in June, signed the settlement during a court hearing in Manhattan.
“This is, in the opinion of the court, a great agreement,” Rakoff said in court.
The bank did not acknowledge any wrongdoing as part of the settlement.
The settlement covers women who said they were sexually abused or trafficked by Epstein or his associates from August 19, 2013, until his death in a Manhattan jail six years later as he awaited trial on the charges Women and teenage girls are accused of being trafficked for sex.
The New York City coroner ruled Epstein’s death a suicide.
The lawsuit was led by a woman named Jane Doe 1, who said Epstein sexually abused her from 2003 to 2018 and accused Deutsche Bank of failing to recognize warning signs about his abuses. Epstein was a customer of Deutsche Bank from 2013 to 2018 after being a customer of JPMorgan Chase for 15 years.
Deutsche Bank has said it made a mistake by accepting Epstein as a client.
Rakoff approved fees of 30% of the settlement amount for the attorneys representing the women.
One of the lawyers, David Boies, said after the hearing that the case was “a wake-up call for banks” that they need to keep an eye on who their customers are.
Rakoff gave New York-based financial services firm JPMorgan preliminary approval in June for a $290 million settlement over similar claims. A final approval hearing in the case is scheduled for Nov. 9.
JPMorgan was also sued by the U.S. Virgin Islands – where Epstein owned two private islands – over claims the bank assisted Epstein. JPMorgan agreed last month to pay $75 million to settle those claims.
JPMorgan has said it regrets working with Epstein.