Newly Released Epstein Documents Reveal Years of Personal Correspondence with Swiss Banking Heiress Ariane de Rothschild
By Ariane Luthi and Tommy Reggiori Wilkes
ZURICH/LONDON, Feb 5 (Reuters) – A trove of documents released by the U.S. Justice Department reveals extensive personal correspondence between Ariane de Rothschild, CEO of the Swiss private bank Edmond de Rothschild, and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, spanning approximately five years before his 2019 arrest.
The emails, made public under court order, show the two arranged multiple meetings at Epstein's residences in New York and Paris, and exchanged dozens of messages on topics ranging from personal gifts to travel plans. The disclosure adds a prominent European banking figure to the list of high-profile associates in Epstein's social orbit, detailed in documents released following legal pressure from victims and U.S. lawmakers.
While the documents reviewed by Reuters show no evidence of criminal wrongdoing by de Rothschild, they appear to contrast with a previous characterisation cited by the Wall Street Journal in 2023, which described her interactions with Epstein as part of her normal banking duties. A bank spokesperson told Reuters Epstein was a "business acquaintance" from 2013 to 2019, and that de Rothschild had no knowledge of his conduct and "unequivocally condemns his behaviour."
The correspondence indicates a familiarity that extended beyond formal business. In one March 2019 exchange, just months before Epstein's arrest on sex trafficking charges, he wrote to de Rothschild informing her he was in Paris. "Are you really ?!! I'm here as well. When would you be free?" she replied. "its been much much too long," Epstein responded, before they arranged to meet the following day.
Other emails show discussions about personal favors and gifts. In 2015, de Rothschild helped create custom candles for Epstein, who wrote, "Candles??? Can't wait to smell. Thanks." She replied that his "favorite mathematical formula" was on them and the scent was "made for you only. It fits with your island"—a reference to Epstein's private Caribbean island, later alleged to be a site of abuse.
The documents also include a 2016 instance where de Rothschild, mentioning she was sick with the flu, declined an invitation from Epstein to stay at his apartment, which he described as a private arrangement where "no one [would be] the wiser."
Ariane de Rothschild, 60, married into the famed European banking dynasty in 1999 and has served as CEO of the Geneva-based firm since 2023, overseeing assets worth 184 billion Swiss francs ($236.8 billion). She is the first woman to lead a Rothschild financial institution.
Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to procuring a minor for prostitution and was charged in 2019 with sex trafficking minors. He died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019.
The release of these documents marks the conclusion of a process initiated under U.S. law to make Epstein-related files public. Reuters reviewed a sample of the more than 4,400 references to de Rothschild's name in the released files, many of which are duplicates of the same email chains.
Reaction & Analysis:
"This isn't just about a few emails," says Michael Thorne, a financial ethics consultant based in London. "For the CEO of a bank built on discretion and legacy, this level of personal familiarity with a known criminal—regardless of the stated business context—creates a profound reputational risk. Clients and regulators will demand clearer answers."
"The bank's statement is a pathetic, corporate-worded dodge," argues Clara Jensen, an advocate for trafficking survivors. "'Business acquaintance'? They discussed candles for his private island—an island now synonymous with the abuse of children. This pattern of powerful people retroactively distancing themselves from Epstein is nauseating. Where was this 'unequivocal condemnation' when he was inviting her to stay privately?"
"We must be careful not to conflate association with culpability," notes Professor David Finch, a historian of European finance at Cambridge. "Epstein deliberately cultivated relationships across elite circles for credibility. The real question for the bank is one of governance: what due diligence processes existed for managing relationships with high-risk individuals, and have they been overhauled since?"
"The timing of these releases keeps the story in the public conscience," observes Anya Petrova, a political risk analyst in Zurich. "For Swiss private banking, which has worked for decades to shed its 'secretive' image, this is an unwelcome spotlight. It reinforces outdated stereotypes at a time when the sector is trying to champion transparency and compliance."