The bulk of Jeffrey Epstein's wealth appears to have come from working with a small number of very wealthy clients who were comfortable giving Epstein control of much more than just their money, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Epstein is facing charges of sex trafficking involving dozens of underage girls. He has pleaded not guilty and is being held in a Manhattan jail while he awaits trial.
The charges, concerning alleged misconduct from at least 2002 to 2005, were announced more than a decade after Epstein pleaded guilty to state prostitution charges in Florida.
Epstein has estimated his net worth at $559 million, including a private plane and homes in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Paris.
He built most of his wealth through his clients, apparel magnate Les Wexner, Johnson & Johnson heiress Elizabeth Ross Johnson, Highbridge Capital Management co-founder Glenn Dubin, Barclays PLC CEO Jes Staley, and Apollo Global Management CEO Leon Black.
Epstein got his start in financing in 1976 working for Bear Stearns selling analyses of stock options to clients. In four years, he became a limited partner but was let go a year later for allegedly allocating shares of IPOs to people who should not have received them.
But that start got him in touch with some wealthy clients, and in 1982 he started a wealth management firm he called J. Epstein & Co.
Wexner, whose company controlled the chains Abercrombie & Fitch, Express, Victoria's Secret and The Limited, was one of his first clients. Epstein managed his stock investments, helped with his taxes and ran his charities and trusts.
He also handled Johnson's portfolio, and his name appears briefly on property records for Johnson's home in Vail and land parcels in Dutchess County, N.Y.
Epstein gave Black tax and estate planning advice, and also served as the director of his family foundation. He earned millions in advising fees.
He also connected Staley, then the head of JPMorgan's private bank, to Dubin, a meeting that earned him $15 million after JPMorgan bought control of Highbridge in 2004 for more than $1 billion – Epstein received the money for the introduction.
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