UPDATE: The Epstein Ties to Execs and Profiteers of the 2008 Financial Crisis
An update to my report on the execs behind the 2008 financial crisis, which crushed the American dream for millions, and how they're thriving in Trump's America, to include their ties to Epstein
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After a lovely evening at a cafe in Europe last week was marred by a Loud Talker, who I identified as an executive involved in the 2008 Financial Crisis, I wrote the investigation below.
The Loud Talker was proclaiming his innocence and declared repeatedly that we “didn’t do anything illegal.”
As I wrote in my report:
“Reflecting back on that devastating era, I thought to myself: ‘That degree of greed should have been illegal. That degree of stupidity is criminal.’
Predators, all, I thought.
And then, as if to psychically counter his obnoxiousness, I thought to myself, where are they now…”
As those who read my report learned, they’re all doing just fine — some are still billionaires, and others have dropped down to the few hundred millionaire range, but all in all, things worked out swell for the swells.
“These guys full well knew they were hawking balloon payment-third mortgages from financially crippled Americans as AAA securities,” I wrote.
And almost immediately after publishing, sending my report floating into the news orbit, I started seeing the names of the men I mention in my report linked in the media to the Russian-backed boogeyman, Jeffrey Epstein.
I had mentioned in my original report that some of the banks got swept up in Epstein-related lawsuits, but I thought it might be worth your while if I spelled out the Epstein ties a bit further in a follow up sidebar, so here goes…
UPDATE: The Epstein Ties to Execs and Profiteers of the 2008 Financial Crisis
Tom Barrack — in my report I noted that Trump pal Barrack profited off the US housing crisis by buying distressed assets, mostly single family homes, and transforming them into rental units, earning him the label of slumlord after the Better Business Bureau reported a pattern of complaints over bad repairs, high fees, and poor maintenance. Trump ally Barrack also kept in close contact with Jeffrey Epstein for years after his 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor, according to more than one hundred texts and emails between the two men from the latest DOJ documents, which revealed Epstein introducing Barrack to Peter Thiel and Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin. Their close relationship continued after Barrack became a key Trump 2016 fundraiser and the leader of Trump’s inaugural committee. In 1980s and ‘90s nightlife circles, Barrack was referred to as one of the three musketeers — along with Epstein and Trump. Apparently, Epstein’s sex conviction wasn’t a friendship deterrent. In September 2009, after Epstein was released from the Palm Beach County jail, Barrack wrote to him: “Thinking about u, hope u r good and life is calm again”… In a 2016 email, Epstein asked for a photo of Barrack’s newborn baby, writing, “send photos of you and child. ---make me smile…”
Sean Hannity — in my investigation, I noted that reports from 2018 revealed Hannity was linked to shell companies that purchased hundreds of distressed homes across the US following the mortgage crisis — 870 homes in seven states. This news broke when the world learned that Hannity was one of only three clients of Trump’s private attorney, Michael Cohen. His first client was a convicted sex felon, his third client, Elliot Broidy, pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). And while Hannity is not directly implicated in the Epstein emails so far, it’s worth noting that he covered up for Trump’s relationship to Epstein multiple times. On his Fox show, he often linked the Clinton’s to Epstein, while defending and minimizing Trump’s relationship to the convicted pedophile. Last month, Hannity told his viewers on air that Trump “never flew on the (Epstein) plane.” We know from Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial that Hannity is either lying or ignorant of the facts, because Trump flew on Epstein’s jet multiple times between 1993 and 1996. Flight logs kept by pilot David Rodgers and released by prosecutors during the trial of Maxwell, Epstein’s accomplice, in late 2021 name Trump as flying on the jet on several occasions in 1993 and 1994. And among the new DOJ files released was an internal email sent by an assistant U.S. SDNY attorney in January 2020, which stated that records obtained from Epstein’s jet revealed Trump had flown in it “many more times than previously has been reported.” These facts are easily known, making it appear that Hannity functions as a propaganda arm for Trump.
Jamie Dimon — as I noted in my report, Dimon is the CEO and chairman of JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in TARP funds. As of December 2025, Forbes lists his net worth at three billion dollars. In 2023, he testified under oath in multiple lawsuits accusing the bank of serving convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein from 1998 to 2013, despite repeated warnings. In 2023, JPMorgan Chase paid $75 million to settle a lawsuit with the US Virgin Islands, which accused the bank of facilitating Epstein’s sex trafficking operations. The bank also settled with Epstein victims for $290 million. In a May 2023 deposition related to multiple Epstein lawsuits, Dimon said, “I don’t recall knowing anything about Jeffrey Epstein until the stories broke sometime in 2019.” According to a Guardian investigation: “This exchange can be found in the US justice department’s Epstein files, with the digital “Epstein library”, as it’s called, tabulating 204 “results” (separate documents, though some duplicative) for Dimon, at current count, and 9,404 for his bank. Epstein was a client of JP Morgan Chase for 15 years, from 1998 to 2013, for the last eight of which Dimon was the bank’s CEO, the position he still holds. And Epstein was not just any client, but a prized one of JPMorgan’s private bank for ultra-wealthy customers. A JP Morgan report, belatedly filed with the treasury department, flagged about 4,700 Epstein-related “suspicious activity” transactions totaling $1.1bn, including payments to women from post-Soviet countries. Through Dimon’s bank, Epstein wired hundreds of millions of dollars to Russian banks. Not only that, a top former JP Morgan executive, Jes Staley, undermined Dimon’s sworn testimony – claiming to have communicated with Dimon on Epstein years before the 2019 arrest. And a current senior bank executive, Mary Erdoes, often said to be on Dimon’s shortlist of candidates to succeed him as CEO, was also actively involved with the Epstein account and was aware, as documents show, of Epstein’s court-affirmed status as a high-risk sex offender. And back in 2010, two years after Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida to soliciting sex from girls as young as 14, an aide to Epstein asked him in an email whether snacks or a meal should be prepared “for your evening appointments” with Staley, Dimon and Lord Peter Mandelson, at that time business secretary in Britain’s Labour government.” Dimon said he did not recall knowing anything about Epstein until 2019, but a trove of correspondence indicates otherwise.
Bank of America — the scandal ridden bank, which forced out CEO Ken Lewis, in 2009 during the mortgage crisis, is now facing accusations of “recklessly disregarding information that the late financier Jeffrey Epstein engaged in sex trafficking.” That is the basis for a class-action lawsuit by Epstein victim that a US District Judge is allowing to proceed as of last Wednesdy. The lawsuit accuses the nation’s second largest bank of “knowingly benefiting from Epstein’s sex trafficking, and of obstructing enforcement of the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act."
It’s disturbing revisiting the men behind the mortgage crisis, learning that many still enjoy the comforts of their vast wealth, while also discovering that close associates of Trump’s massively profited from the catastrophe. Even more disturbing are the close ties some share with Jeffrey Epstein, knowing that he was a pedophile did not seem to be a deterrent.
As I write this I think about the next likely bubble — the AI bubble — there is a lot that’s fishy about AI, with byzantine contractual obligations and preposterous promises of future investment.
We’ll be discussing all that in an upcoming Founder’s Day series with my podcast partner Jim Stewartson, an Emmy award-winning game developer who worked in the AI space.
As we’ll learn, the sheer amount of money at play this time is in the trillions.
Is this going to be worse than 2008?
And whose interests would an engineered crisis serve?
A story we’ll be watching closely.
To read my original “where are they now” report, please keep scrolling.
Don’t Worry - the Men Who Stole the American Dream Are Doing Just Fine
I decided to take a look at executives involved in the 2008 financial crisis, which crushed the American dream for millions of families, only to find out, most of them are thriving in Trump’s America
Originally published February 9, 2026
When I set out to learn why so many Americans went MAGA — unaware they’d fallen prey to a Russian op — I was saddened to learn that some had turned bitter after the devastation of the 2008 mortgage meltdown.
I interviewed a series of people who were attracted to Trump’s promises, because they said they felt let down after the financial crisis and the loss of their homes.
During the actual recession, I produced a broadcast news series - a toolkit of sorts - to help people stay in their homes after being conned by predatory lenders. I had firsthand experience trying to save a home from a Big Evil Bank, which I wrote about here:
Creeps In Trump’s Orbit
So many creeps in Trump’s orbit profited off the devastation of human loss — Tom Barrack and Sean Hannity come to mind.
Trump pal Barrack profited off the US housing crisis by buying distressed assets, mostly single family homes, and transforming them into rental units, earning him the label of slumlord after the Better Business Bureau reported a pattern of complaints over bad repairs, high fees, and poor maintenance.
Reports from 2018 revealed Hannity was linked to shell companies that purchased hundreds of distressed homes across the US following the mortgage crisis — 870 homes in seven states. This news broke when the world learned that Hannity was one of only three clients of Trump’s private attorney, Michael Cohen. His first client was a convicted sex felon, his third client, Elliot Broidy, pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
The Devastation of the American Dream
Just a reminder: the 2008 financial crisis severely damaged the world, prompting a global recession and the devastation of the American dream.
Everyone was dirty — the banks, the brokers, and Wall Street for funding the entire operation. Admittedly, I have sympathy for the borrowers, because yeah, they should have known better, but like me, were often too trusting.
Loud Talker
So there I was at a cafe the other night, trying not to listen to a Loud Talker, four tables over, but that proved impossible.
He was telling the young audience imprisoned at his table, that NO ONE ON WALL STREET DID ANYTHING ILLEGAL. Being an investigative reporter, I quickly figured out who he was, but that’s not the point of this report.
Reflecting back on that devastating era, I thought to myself: “That degree of greed should have been illegal. That degree of stupidity is criminal."
Predators, all, I thought.
And then, as if to psychically counter his obnoxiousness, I thought to myself, where are they now?
What happened to the men who crushed the American Dream with their greed and predatory behavior?
Well, it turns out, they’re all doing fine.
Thanks to the leadership of George W. Bush, the banks — with the exception Lehman Brothers — were bailed out by the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Among the largest recipients of TARP funds were Bank of America, Wells Fargo, AIG, JPMorgan Chase, General Motors, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley.
Not bailed out, however, were the six to eight million people who lost their homes to foreclosure during the peak of the crisis, with estimates reaching up to 10 million between the years 2007 to 2014.
So Where Are They Now
Richard Fuld, the last CEO of Lehman Brothers, a major driver in mortgage-backed securities, led the company when it filed for bankruptcy in 2008 to the tune of $613 billion. Fuld went off the grid until 2016, when he became the CEO of Matrix Private Capital Group, managing assets for wealthy clients. His net worth is unknown but reportedly in the $100 million range.
Jamie Dimon is the CEO and chairman of JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in TARP funds. As of December 2025, Forbes lists his net worth at three billion dollars. In 2023, he testified under oath in multiple lawsuits accusing the bank of serving convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein from 1998 to 2013, despite repeated warnings. In 2023, JPMorgan Chase paid $75 million to settle a lawsuit with the US Virgin Islands, which accused the bank of facilitating Epstein’s sex trafficking operations. The bank also settled with Epstein victims for $290 million. In January of 2025, Dimon said he supported Trump’s tariff policies.
John J. Mack was the CEO of Morgan Stanley, which was saved from collapse by a government bailout — $10 billion of TARP funds and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, which injected it with $9 billion dollars. Among the boards he sat on before his retirement was Glencore, which had a hefty stake in Russian oil. While CEO at Morgan Stanley, he earned a total compensation of $41 million, and his net worth is listed in the $200 million range.
Lloyd Blankfein was the CEO of Goldman Sachs, which received a $10 billion government bailout. He remained at Goldman Sachs until 2018. He is releasing his memoir, Streetwise: Getting to and Through Goldman Sachs, next month. As of February 2026, Forbes lists his net worth as $2.3 billion. In 2022, he said, the US economy feels “growthier” since Trump.
Ken Lewis was the CEO of Bank of America during the financial crisis and oversaw the purchase of Merrill Lynch and Countrywide Financial. Lewis paid a $10 million dollar settlement, after being sued for misleading shareholders. Shareholders acrimoniously attempted to force him out, and he retired in 2009. Reports of his estimated net worth fluctuate wildly, but he is estimated to own about 1.6 million shares in Bank of America stock, valued at $94 million.
John Stumpf was the chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo during the 2008 crisis, and served until 2016, when he was forced to resign after a fraud scandal revealing employees creating millions of fake accounts to meet sales targets. He was barred from the banking industry. Although he had to forfeit $69 million in compensation, in 2020, the Los Angeles Times reported he’ll never have to work again — citing stock valued at $80 million when he walked away, as well as a pension worth $22.7 million.
Former Countrywide Financial executives. You might recall that Countrywide made predatory loans to tens of thousands of Americans, which helped ignite the global catastrophe. In 2009, about a dozen Countrywide executives began buying delinquent home mortgages that the US government took from other failed banks, sometimes for pennies on the dollar. And they got very rich.
I had the massive displeasure of a phone conversation in 2007 with a Countrywide executive. I can’t swear to which one it was, but our mutual was from the well-heeled hills of Calabasas, California. I was put on the phone with the exec because he supposedly was interested in nightlife and potentially getting into the nightclub world, and I had been a nightlife columnist for the Los Angeles Times since 1992 and knew everyone. Always happy to help.
For about ten grating minutes, I listened to the person on the other end of the phone talk, and talk over me, and keep on talking. It was like listening to a coked up businessman, addicted to the sound of his own voice.
I couldn’t get a word in edgewise and frankly, I stopped trying.
I was glad when Countrywide exploded, saddened by all the harm they caused. Today as I write this report, I am equally saddened to learn everything turned out just fine for their C-team.
It’s true, that their former CEO died of natural causes, and their former president died of Covid and brain cancer. But while they were alive, they had luxurious post-bubble lives.
Only one US banker went to prison for the entire preventable nightmare. His name has long been forgotten — Kareem Serageldin. The former executive for Credit Suisse was sentence to prison in 2013, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to falsify books and records. He admitted to marking down losses to inflate the value of securities. He was released from the Moshannon Valley Correctional Center in Pennsylvania a decade ago, in March of 2016.
He was it — the only US executive to do prison time for the 2008 mortgage meltdown, which brought millions of families to ruin and the entire world to its knees.
According to the unnamed exec at the cafe, the loud talker who ruined everyone’s night within earshot, “they did nothing illegal.”
These guys full well knew they were hawking balloon payment-third mortgages from financially crippled Americans as AAA securities.
I’ve met cocaine dealers with better morals.
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