Epstein's Will: High Finance, Higher Secrets
The Financial Times reported that Jeffrey Epstein appointed Jes Staley, former CEO of Barclays, and Lawrence Summers, former Treasury Secretary and Harvard President, as executors of his will. This news is presented with the usual reverence for such towering figures, a mere footnote to Epstein's sordid legacy. Conveniently absent is any deep dive into the 'why' these men—one tied to Epstein's
'financial advisory services,' the other benefiting from his 'donations'—were entrusted with managing his estate, rather than say, career fiduciaries. One might observe a pattern: powerful individuals protecting powerful individuals, even from beyond the grave. What the report doesn't hammer home is the sheer audacity of Epstein's choices, and the continued proximity of establishment figures to
his orbit even after his crimes were public. Summers, after his tenure at Harvard ended amid controversy, landed at D.E. Shaw & Co., a firm where Epstein himself once claimed to work. Staley? His contact with Epstein was significant enough to prompt scrutiny from regulators. The financial elite's interconnectedness isn't a bug; for Epstein, it appeared to be a feature. It raises the obvious
question: if these were his trusted associates for his actual will, what other 'favors' might these connections imply?