Former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley has denied having sex with a woman dressed as Disney character Snow White, despite being questioned over a series of emails he exchanged with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The denial was made during a closed-door congressional interview in the United States last month, with newly released transcripts revealing that lawmakers questioned Staley about the controversial correspondence.
The emails, exchanged between Staley and Epstein in July 2010, referred to Disney princesses. Staley wrote to Epstein, “That was fun. Say hi to Snow White,” before Epstein asked which character he would like next. Staley replied, “Beauty and the Beast”, prompting Epstein to respond that one side was available.
During the congressional questioning, Staley was asked directly whether he had ever had sex with a young woman wearing a Snow White costume.
“No, I did not,” he replied.
Lawmakers then raised another email sent to Epstein the following day by an unidentified person, which referred to Snow White having been sexually involved with someone after putting on the costume.
The representative questioned Staley over why such an email would have been sent to Epstein if he had not been involved with the woman. Staley said he did not know who else she had been with and insisted the matter had nothing to do with him.
Staley acknowledged that he may have seen the woman at Epstein’s apartment and suggested this could have prompted the email, but maintained that he had not been with anyone dressed as Snow White, apart from potentially crossing paths with her at the apartment.
He was also challenged over the apparent coincidence between his “That was fun” message and the Snow White-related email sent to Epstein the following day.
Staley accepted that the timing was unusual but continued to deny that the exchange indicated any sexual encounter involving him.
The former banker was further asked whether he and Epstein had used Disney princess names as code words when selecting women for sexual encounters. Staley rejected the suggestion, answering: “No.”
The testimony has renewed scrutiny of Staley’s longstanding relationship with Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died in a US prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal child sex-trafficking charges.
Staley first met Epstein in 2000 after becoming head of JPMorgan Chase’s private bank, where Epstein was a client. Their relationship continued for years, including after Staley became Barclays chief executive in 2015.
His association with Epstein eventually contributed to his departure from Barclays in 2021 after UK financial regulators began investigating how he had described his relationship with Epstein.
Staley was subsequently barred from working in Britain’s financial sector after regulators found that he had misled them about the nature of his ties to Epstein.
He later challenged the ban in court but failed to overturn it, with proceedings exposing further details about his relationship with Epstein.
The latest congressional testimony is expected to add to scrutiny surrounding Staley’s dealings with Epstein as US lawmakers continue investigating the late financier’s network and activities.
